WITH the weekend approaching at a rapid pace, its time to prepare for another round of the Northern Territory Football League Women’s (NTFLW) Premier League. The competition has reached the penultimate round of action, with the top-four far from locked in. There are some exciting matchups on the schedule, none moreso than last year’s champs looking to cement their spot in the postseason for the end of the season.

Darwin Buffaloes vs PINT

Saturday, Feburary 12 @ 4pm
TIO Stadium

The biggest match of the round will take place on Saturday afternoon, when the Darwin Buffaloes host PINT at TIO Stadium, in a clash that will have massive reprecussions on the standings come season’s end.

The Buffaloes will be gearing up for a big finals series in the coming weeks, with just two matches left for the side to prepare themselves. This match will likely be a preview of a postseason matchup, so this provides the perfect opportunity for Darwin to get a gague on where they are in comparision to their peers. However, they will be eager to get back to their early season form, which saw them prove too good for every team in the competition, before dropping off in a big way. However, they dominated the Wanderers in round 15, thanks to a best-on-ground performance from Tia Patterson-Dunn, so they could be back.

PINT will be fresh coming into this clash, given they had the bye in Round 15, which gave them the perfect opportunity to get some energy heading into the finals. They will need to keep in mind that they are still a mathematical chance of slipping out of the top-four in the next two weeks, given the resurgance of St Mary’s in Round 15. However, a win here would seal their fate inside the finals for the season, so they will be eager to remove all doubt and claim the win over the Buffaloes. Either way, this should be a cracking contest, especially if forward Reni Hicks can back up her seven-goal performance from round 14.

Around the grounds now, the Nightcliff Tigers will be looking to lock in top spot on the ladder when they take on the Southern Districts at Norbuilt Oval on Saturday afternoon. The Tigers are two games up on second place as it stands, but the Buffaloes could dethrone them if Nightcliff lose their last two games, so a win here would absolutely help this cause.

Moving over to Cazaly’s Stadium, the Wanderers and the Palmerston Magpies will go head-to-head on Saturday afternoon, with both sides eager to finish the season in style. With the two teams ruled out of finals contention, this match will have bragging rights up for grabs heading into next season.

The final match of the round will see Waratah also look to lock in their place in the top four when they take on Tracy Village at Tracy Village Oval on Sunday afternoon. With St Mary’s given the bye this weekend, a win for Waratah against the league’s bottom-placed side will guarantee an appearance in the finals, so expect them to come out motivated this week.