"They shouldn't have beaten us last time" was the blunt assessment from City coach Kelvin Francis when asked about the upcoming match.
And with home advantage, and three wins from their last four outings, City's hopes of reversing the previous result and securing their position on the ladder will be high.
With kickoff at 2.30pm, this will definitely be a game to watch, with my pick being City to claim the victory by a single goal.
In the curtain raiser for the first team, the City Reserves will host Hokowhitu on the main ground at Wembley at 12.30pm.
The Reserves will be heading into their match with a big helping of self belief after downing the Linton 1sts last weekend, adding another scalp to their collection, and setting themselves up for a late run up the table.
Having been held to a draw by Athletic last weekend, Hokowhitu will be keen to dispel the hoodoo plaguing their recent form at Wembley Park.
They certainly showed why they sit atop the Western Premiership at the moment, with long phases of prolonged attack, and a never-say-die attitude, but they'll need to do more if they are to overcome the resurgent Reserves and their stoic and physical gameplay.
While my pick is the Reserves may not walk away with the win today, they'll certainly let Hokowhitu know they've been in a match, and will hold them to a draw, throwing a spanner in the works for the visitors hopes of claiming the title this season.
The City Renovators will be looking to put some consistency back into their weekly performances as they take to Wembley's side field to have a crack at bottom-of-the-table Red Sox Rovers at 12.30pm.
The Renovators have been a mercurial team to date, with Tex von Kwiatowski having a positive outlook on the development of his side throughout the season.
With the plan of preparing his young side for next season, von Kwiatowski will see today as a prime opportunity for his side to show their attacking prowess against a side who seem to leak more goals than Brazil in a world cup semifinal.
Today should be a great chance for the likes of Tesco Grunwald and Max Davidson to step up and show what the future of Wanganui City has in store. These two talented young players will be ones to watch, with their understanding of the game and ability to convert passion into results marking them as talent that can't be ignored I'm picking this match to be a bit one-sided, and with the reverse fixture resulting in a 7-0 hammering by the Renovators, this game could well blow out to a big score again as well.
Wanganui Athletic must have been scratching their heads as to what went wrong last weekend, and working hard at training to ensure their defensive lapses can quickly become a thing of the past.
After letting go of what seemed a sure victory over their toughest opposition to date last Saturday, the Reds now sit with an uneasy grip on third place in the league, with Massey nipping at their heels.
A win today for Athletic would see them pull clear of Massey, yet a loss would see the home team leapfrog them, and be at risk of dropping as far as fifth place.
If the Reds can control the game and release their attacking options in Scott Burney and Hishi Lama, then they stand a good chance of taking away maximum competition points.
With that sort of attack up their sleeves, I'm picking they'll take the victory by two goals today.
