Auckland FC return to the A-League Finals Series for the second year in a row and face a strong Melbourne City team in their quest to go further than they did last year and win the grand final.
Here is everything you need to know about the finals series and New Zealand’s most decorated professional football team before their biggest match of the season.
Six teams still have a chance to win the championship trophy, including last season’s champions Melbourne City.
The top two teams, this year being the Newcastle Jets and Adelaide United, automatically progress to the semi-finals and will have a week to prepare for their eventual opponents.
Two elimination finals take place this weekend, the first being third-placed Auckland FC against Melbourne City, who finished the regular season in sixth.
That game is swiftly followed by Melbourne Victory against Sydney FC, who finished fourth and fifth on the ladder respectively.
The elimination finals are a one-off winner-takes-all match to decide which teams will progress to the semi-finals.
The lowest-ranked team to go through will take on the Newcastle Jets, because they finished at the top of the table and took home the Premiers Plate, while the highest-ranked team from the elimination finals will play Adelaide United.
If Auckland FC were to win their elimination final, they would be guaranteed to play Adelaide United.
The semi-finals are then played over two legs, the first leg being played between May 8 and 10 and the second between May 15 and 17, with the winners of each semi-final on aggregate progressing to the Grand Final.
The season’s showpiece event will be played on either May 23 or 24 and the highest-placed team to qualify will be the host.
Saturday, 5pm
The Black Knights have had a tough end to the season and are winless in their last five matches (three draws and two losses), with their last victory coming on March 14 against table-toppers Newcastle Jets.
Two goals from Guillermo May secured Auckland a draw against Sydney FC in the team’s final regular-season match, but meant they dropped to third and missed the chance of an automatic semi-final spot after Adelaide United beat Melbourne City and leapfrogged them on the ladder.
Coach Steve Corica commented on the pressure his side expect to face at the weekend and could face some selection issues after revealing top-scorer Sam Cosgrove and All White Jesse Randall missed training.
“It’s definitely a pressure game because it’s a one-off game,” Corica said. “It’s a do or die at the moment.”
He also praised his side’s ability to fight despite results not going their way recently.
“We showed great character coming back twice as well in Sydney, which is never easy.
“The fighting spirit’s there, they worked hard, we’re scoring goals, just got to tidy up defensively a little bit.”
Melbourne City have won four of their last five matches, with their only blip coming against Adelaide United last weekend.
However, the Australian side have struggled at Go Media Stadium, losing 3-0 in both contests at the stadium and only managed to draw with the Wellington Phoenix in their one other visit to New Zealand this season.
Saturday, 9.40pm
The Melbourne Victory are back where they were this time last season and almost went on to win the entire competition before losing 1-0 to Melbourne City in last year’s Grand Final.
The Victory had a mixed end to the season, winning two, drawing two and losing once in their last five games, helping them finish fourth on 40 points.
Captain Roderick Miranda said having the home fans behind the team gives them a major advantage.
“I think everybody here in the club, and for sure, all across the league, are expecting a big, big crowd coming in to support us,” he said.
“We know it’s a big part of our achievement as well. All of our success relies a lot on our home fans when we play at home, it’s a big advantage to us.”
The Melbourne side are prolific goal scorers, putting the ball in the back of the net 44 times this season, the third highest tally in the league, while their Sydney-based opponents only managed 33 which is the joint-fourth worst goal-scoring record this season.
Sydney FC make up for this lack of attacking threat with the A-League’s most solid defence, conceding just 25 goals, the best figures in the competition.
The Sky Blues had the chance to finish second but a draw against Auckland FC meant they were forced to play in the Elimination Final, but captain Rhyan Grant has taken a positive attitude into the fixture.
“I think if you look at our history against Victory in Finals Series, there’s a lot there,” Grant said. “I think it’s great for the neutral.
“It’s always tough going down to Melbourne and playing at AAMI Park. So yeah, we’ll have our hands full, but looking forward to it.
“It’s always nice beating Victory, whether you’re playing them during the season or in a Final Series.”