THE weekend is just around the corner and so is the upcoming round of the Northern Territory Football League Women’s (NTFLW) Premier League. Round 16 will see a number of intriguing matchups take place across a number of grounds, with three clashes set to take place on Saturday and one more the following day. With just three weeks remaining until the home and away season concludes and the finals series kicks off, each match now carries quite a bit of significance with plenty of ladder spots still up for grabs.

WARATAH vs ST MARY’S
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 5 @4:15pm
GARDENS OVAL

In a blockbuster clash, St Mary’s will look to stay in the race for the finals when they take on Waratah at Gardens Oval on Saturday afternoon. There isn’t much separating the two teams to this point in the season, so this should make for an entertaining clash with plenty on the line for both sides.

Waratah are sitting nicely in third spot on the ladder, with nine wins and three losses next to their name from 12 outings. They have the opportunity to move up the standings in the final few weeks, but also run the risk of slipping out of the top four depending on results. They have the chance to carve their own fate in this match, as they come up against the side that is looking to steal their spot in the finals, so this clash is quite crucial in the context of their season. They are fresh off a big win over the Wanderers, and will have benefited from an extra three days rest, given the match took place last Wednesday, where Lisa Miceli booted six goals, so expect her to be involved again.

St Mary’s have been out of form recently, and this has seen a drop in ladder position. They have lost their spot in the top four due to a number of losses in recent weeks and are close to falling out of finals contention, so they will need to lift their form quickly if they are to turn things around. This weekend is essentially a do-or-die clash as they need to keep up with Waratah and PINT in the standings. They have shown the capability to get the job done throughout the year, but will need to improve on last week’s effort which saw them fall to a lower ranked Districts side in poor fashion.

AROUND THE GROUNDS

The contest set to kick off the round will be the clash between the Nightcliff Tigers and the Palmerston Magpies at Darwin Mazda Nightcliff Oval in what is shaping up to be a one-sided affair. The Tigers are sitting nicely at the top of the standings, while the Magpies have not been as successful this season, but will be looking to finish their season on a high and claim the upset win.

Moving over to TIO Stadium, the Southern Districts will be looking to make it two in a row when they take on Tracy Village on Saturday afternoon. The Districts upset St Mary’s last weekend and while it seems improbable that they will defy all odds and make the finals, they will be looking to finish the season in a strong way, starting with taking down the winless Tracy Village in Round 16.

The final match of the round will see the Wanderers welcome the Darwin Buffaloes to Tracy Village Oval on Sunday morning. The Buffaloes claimed a Round 15 win thanks to a forfeit from their opponents, so they will be fresh this weekend. However, the last time they hit the field , they found themselves on the receiving end of a tough loss at the hands of Waratah, so the Wanderers will be smelling an upset if they can fire.