Would like to see Sydney hold FFA Cup qualifiers a little later next year.

Agree. I think they did it earlier since it isn't part of the NSW cup so they are pretty much doing 2 cups. Easily fixed by having them overlap a bit like the Capital 1 and FA cup.

I reckon all 22 qualifier games on the same day or weekend would be a great lead up to the cup.

Can anyone give a good reason for why these cup matches have to be on weeknights? I really don't see the problem with dedicated cup weekends that extend the season slightly. Unfortunately Fox are going to make sure the later rounds are on weeknights even though some of the games they won't televise would be better suited to an afternoon kickoff

Fox are partly paying for the tournament. Part of that is that they want extra content. The FFA have stated the cup will start earlier this year to give the non aleague teams a better chance. Thus it starts during the afl and nrl season. Fox does not want to have these matches up against these sports. They prefer to have it on a low rating Tuesday or Wednesday night time slot.

The aleague will start after the afl and nrl seasons are complete. By this stage the cup will be up to the semi final stages. We cant have a cup weekend for 2 matches.

Its at least this way this year and next year because it was a 3 year deal.

I understand why the cup proper is on weeknights but why do these qualifying rounds have so many mid-week matches? Sure you can't go ahead and add 5-6 weeks to the Vic or NSW seasons but at least 2-3 extra rounds wouldn't hurt anyone? And what's wrong with some ro32 games on a weekend if Fox aren't going to broadcast it anyway?

The very early rounds are on the weekend. Our qualifier to get into the first round for Vic was on a Saturday afternoon.

Was that in pre-season?

When does the ffa cup rd 32 start? I have been looking on the ffa cup site as well as pursuit of the cup and I can't find a date

Today we discover who will be playing off in the Northern Territory with Alice Springs and Darwin finals being held today from 7pm. Get around it.

Farkin mon Celtic FC of Alice Springs.

Any updates from Darwin?

7-2 ft

olympic have to be heavy favorites from here

Nickolls keeps faith in FFA cup run
Scott Sawyer

FOOTBALL: He's a green thumb whose hands may hold the fate of Noosa's FFA Cup fairytale.

Twenty-two-year-old former Sunshine Coast Fire custodian Sam Nickolls has been a revelation for the Lions this year.

Having left the Fire seeking more regular game time, Nickolls has slotted in perfectly at Noosa, said coach Ben Cahn, who labelled the young gloveman his side's best player thus far this season.

Sitting third on the McDonald's Premier League ladder is evidence the Lions have benefited from Nickolls' presence between the sticks.

But the apprentice greenkeeper is a young man with big dreams and this weekend's FFA Cup clash with Wide Bay outfit United Warriors could be a launch pad for his career.

"The tournament is a great concept," Nickolls said.

"We saw last season club sides taking on A-League teams on TV and who knows what can happen from that (if his side could push into the latter stages of the competition)."

Nickolls was candid when asked about his time at the Fire and what drove his move away.

"I was always looking over my shoulder knowing any small mistake would see me pulled out straight away, I felt I'd never really solidified a spot," he said.

"Having the backing of a great club and a great team this year has given me a world of confidence."

That new-found injection of confidence was evident in Nickolls' display against his former club last Tuesday.

He made a number of crucial saves to keep Noosa in the game, which they eventually snatched deep into extra time, to extend their unlikely cup run.

"It was massive- a really good opportunity- not just for myself but a few others who had either played for the team or not quite made the team, to show what we could do against a quality side like the Fire," Nickolls said.

While Nickolls and his side would be lying if they didn't admit to having a potential A-League match up somewhere in the back of their minds, the young shot-stopper and his coach, Ben Cahn, both said the focus was firmly on steeling themselves for a test of the unknown against United Warriors.

"I expect it'll be difficult and it'll be frantic," Cahn said.

"We'll look to have a really aggressive early start like we did against the Fire and while we wouldn't be human if we were not be optimistic... the only game we've spoken about is the Hervey Bay game."

GAME DAY:

 FFA Cup Southern Zone Qualifying Round 6

 Noosa Lions FC v United Warriors FC

 Girraween Sports Complex, Noosa Heads, Saturday, kick-off 7pm

Hervey Bay United Warriors to face Noosa Lions

Matthew McInerney | 16th Jun 2015 10:24 AM

Alistair Brightman

UNITED Warriors may need Lady Luck's blessing if they are to progress beyond the sixth round of the FFA Cup.

The Hervey Bay club has only had to play two games so far, and on both occasions recorded resounding 4-1 wins.

But the path of opponents Noosa Lions has been much less linear, with a second round loss an unusual sight on the knockout fixtures.

Noosa was comprehensively beaten by Kawana on May 13, but an ineligible player had Kawana expelled from the Cup.

Kawana was found to have fielded a player without an international transfer in the 5-1 win over Noosa, and a Football Queensland disciplinary committee made the decision to expel the club on June 5.

The luck kept coming for the Steven Bradburys of the FFA Cup, as an own goal with five minutes of extra time left had the side extinguish Sunshine Coast Fire 3-2.

Noosa coach Ben Cahn praised the efforts of goalkeeper Sam Nickolls on the night, as he put in a performance Cahn ranked as "good a goalkeeping display" he had seen.

United Warriors will be without star goalkeeper Sam Whatman, who leaves the country bound for trials with top European clubs later this week. The winner of Saturday night's clash will face Palm Beach Sharks on June 27. The winner of that game could face an A-League side.

Noosa Lions v United Warriors at Noosa Lions Field 1 Saturday. Kick-off is at 7pm.

Drama as Darwin Olympic advances in FFA Cup with NorZone final win over Casuarina
DOUG BOOTH

DARWIN Olympic are the inaugural winners of the NorZone FFA Cup.

They defeated Casuarina 7-2 in tonight’s Top End cup final to earn the right

to play the winners from the southern zone for a place in the final draw of 32

in the national competition.

But they will not know their opponents until Thursday as the Alice Springs cup


final between Celtic and Scorpions was postponed last night due to a

waterlogged pitch.

The Top End final was effectively over in the opening half an hour when

Olympic scored four goals and Casuarina had goalkeeper Jordan Guerreiro sent

off.

The final took a dramatic turn after just six minutes when former Brisbane Roar

youth team player Peter Roditis suffered a complicated leg fracture.


The Olympic striker was running onto a through ball when he was brought

down in the penalty area by a late challenge from Guerreiro.

Play was held up for almost an hour as Roditis received treatment on the

ground before an ambulance took him from the field and to hospital.

After the lengthy delay, Guerreiro was sent off for serious foul play and referee

Tim Lay awarded a penalty which captain Oldrich Dubsky clinically converted.

It was a dramatic start to the cup showdown and one that neither of the cup

finalists would have wanted.

Casuarina striker Theo Rossides fired in a low left-foot shot as the 10-man

Rowdies tried to claw their way back into the match with 21 minutes gone.

Just as it looked as Casuarina were starting to come back Kevin Menda made it

2-0 with a stunning strike from 25 metres.

Foday Mansaray made it 3-0 after 32 minutes when he took full advantage of a

defensive error to coolly slot the ball home past replacement keeper Reza

Passmore.

Two minutes later and it was 4-0 as Olympic started to take advantage of their

numerical advantage.

Michael Tsounias went on a dazzling run in which he beat three players before

sliding his right-foot shot into the empty goal.

The cup-tie appeared to be over with the 4-0 half-time scoreline but Olympic

were not finished, adding to their tally after 53 minutes when Tsounias scored

his second.

John Drohan scored Olympic’s sixth goal in the 59th minute before Zico

Casimiro pulled a goal back two minutes later for Casuarina.

What's the difference between the maccas premier league and the sea fm 3 cities league?

One is the Sunshine Coast league and the other is a combined Hervey Bay, Maryborough and Bundaberg league. Technically they'd both be 3rd division, but you can assume the SC league is much stronger. Im pretty sure Gympie Diggers joined the SC league recently, I assume they are a form of elite team for the area. But they are coming 9th from 11 atm. Not 100 on all the info though.

Edited by scott21: 17/6/2015 04:09:25 AM