Footage of Dwight Yorke’s pre-game speech on coaching debut with Macarthur FC reveals just how seriously he will be taking the challenge of Wednesday night’s Australia Cup round-of-16 clash with Modbury Jets.
The Bulls face the South Australian State League One side at Service FM Stadium midweek, with the opportunity to progress to the cup quarter-finals.
It’s Yorke’s second competitive game as a head coach after a comprehensive 6-0 win over Magpies Crusaders FC in the round of 32.
Yorke and the Bulls allowed Australia Cup media behind the scenes on his coaching debut; the Manchester United legend showed no sign of underestimating the Football Queensland Premier League opponents on that night, a trait which bodes well for tonight’s challenge against the only team left in the competition who compete outside the top division in their own state.
Opta Stats
- This will be the first meeting between Modbury Jets and Macarthur FC in the Australia Cup; indeed, it will be the first time the Bulls have faced a South Australian team in the competition.
- Modbury Jets defeated Armadale SC 5-2 in the Round of 32 of the 2022 Australia Cup; they will be aiming to become just the second member federation team from South Australia to progress from the Round of 16 (Adelaide City FC in 2014).
- This will be Macarthur’s second appearance in the Australia Cup round of 16; they lost to Sydney FC in their only previous such fixture in 2021 (2-0) following extra time on the day.
- Macarthur had a passing accuracy of 89% in the round of 32 of the 2022 Australia Cup, the second-best rate of any team (Wellington Phoenix – 92%).
- Liam McCabe (Modbury Jets) created nine scoring chances (including two assists) in the round of 32 of the 2022 Australia Cup – the most of any player and five more than Macarthur FC’s best (Daniel Arzani – four).
MATCH DETAILS
Modbury Jets v Macarthur FC
Date: Wednesday 10 August 2022
Time: 7:30pm AEST
Venue: Service FM Stadium
Retre reliving ‘great memories’ of Bentleigh Greens as Sky Blues prepare for stern NPL challenge
It’s a return to an old stomping ground for Sydney FC midfielder Paulo Retre as the Sky Blues travel to Kingston Heath Soccer Complex to mix it with an NPL Men Victoria outfit with a brilliant round of 16 record.
Retre played for Bentleigh Greens for one season in 2012, scoring four goals in 23 appearances for the Victorian side.
He then departed for Melbourne City before joining Sydney ahead of the 2017-18 Isuzu UTE A-League season. Preparing for his sixth campaign in Sky Blue, Retre sees Wednesday night’s Australia Cup round-of-16 clash with his former club as a good test for his current side to overcome.
“Its going to be an exciting game, all the boys are definitely looking forward to it,” Retre said.
“They have come off a decent win in the last round of the cup, so they will be ready to go and they are a good side. The boys will be up for it.”
He added: “I have great memories of my time there. I had a good coach in John Anastasiadis; he’s now coaching with Western United.
“It put me in good stead for my A-League career playing in a senior men’s competition against some experienced players.”
OPTA STATS
- This will be the first meeting between Bentleigh Greens and Sydney FC in the Australia Cup; Bentleigh have won only one of their previous five matches in the competition against A-League Men teams (1-0 v Wellington Phoenix – 7 August 2018).
- Bentleigh have won three of their four round-of-16 matches in the Australia Cup, including a 4-0 win in their most recent such fixture (2018 v Broadmeadow Magic).
- Sydney have won five of their six round-of-16 matches in the Australia Cup, including their last four in succession; the Sky Blues have conceded just a single goal across those last four games.
- Bentleigh (3.63) and Sydney (3.62) had the highest Expected Goals values of any teams in the round of 32 of the 2022 Australia Cup.
- Bentleigh’s Jacob Alexander (30) and Sydney’s Diego Caballo (16) played the most and joint-second most passes into the box (inc. crosses) of any players in the round of 32 of the 2022 Australia Cup.
MATCH DETAILS
Bentleigh Greens v Sydney FC
Date: Wednesday 10 August 2022
Time: 7:30pm AEST
Venue: Kingston Heath Soccer Complex
