Report by Tommy Doleman

Paul Zimarino in action for Perth SC against Rockingham City last Saturday. Zimarino scored two in Perth's 7-0 win. Photo by Rob Lizzi

UPDATE: Round Six of the NPLWA - Men’s competition begins on Friday night when defending champions Perth SC travel to Crazy Domains Stadium to face Perth Glory (7.30pm).

Three Covid postponements mean the Azzurri have played just twice this term, contributing to their unfamiliar 10^th place in the table.

Now the games will come thick and fast for Marc Wingell’s side, with Friday’s trip to Forrestfield starting an eight-game stretch over the next month.

A positive for Perth is that they are coming off a 7-0 Australia Cup win over first division Rockingham City. Paul Zimarino scored twice last Saturday and he says the result will give the squad plenty of belief going into their busy schedule.

“It’s been a bit frustrating. We had a pretty intense pre-season and the boys hit the ground running and we just wanted to continue that into the season, but it’s been a bit disrupted,” he said.

“But we’ve kept going at training, we’ve been working hard and hopefully we can get a good run of games and a bit of consistency going.

“The win (over Rockingham) was so vital because it’s been a few weeks for us and it was really good to get out there and implement what we’ve done on the training ground into a game.

“Those games can be quite tricky because those teams are always up for the fight, but it was good we got in there, scored a few and hopefully that’s a nice confidence boost for the team.”

Zimarino returned to the Azzurri this year after a frustrating 2021 with Gwelup Croatia, which saw the midfielder struggle to find his rhythm with time spent injured on the sidelines. But he feels reinvigorated back at Dorrien Gardens and hopes to work towards rediscovering the form which saw him score 21 times in 26 games in 2018.

“At the back end of the previous season after the 2020 (Top Four Cup) final, I had hip surgery which ruled me out for a good six months, so I missed the entirety of the pre-season and always thought I was playing catch-up. I got back to some sort of fitness and another thing went, so it was just a frustrating year with all of that happening,” he said.

“I’ve managed to do every session of what’s been a tough pre-season this year and it’s what I’ve needed to get up and running again. I’m feeling good, working my way into it, and just want to try and get back to where I was a couple of seasons ago. And I feel I’m on the right track and in the environment to do that with the support of the club.

“The 2018 season is what I want to get back to playing like. It’s going to be quite difficult to score 20 goals again, but I’ve done it before so I want to try and get back to that, and hopefully make some finals and win some silverware with this young team at Perth.

“I was only away for one season but it felt a lot longer and I’m really happy to be home, as I call it. To go out and lead the boys on Saturday, it was a really nice feeling personally and it’s good to be back, having that leadership role and enjoying that bit of pressure to stand up for the team.”

Zimarino has history against this weekend’s opponents, having scored a hat-trick in the 2018 Top Four Cup final win over Glory. There is also a link to the present, with brother Adam figuring in the A-League Men’s team this season, while being a part of Glory’s NPL side.

“As a family who have grown up with football in WA all our lives, our whole family are massive Glory fans and anyone who knows me well knows how much I love Glory and going to the games,” he said.

“So, for me to go and watch Adam play is a bit surreal and the whole family is very proud to see him push on and take the next step. Especially for my parents putting three boys through football, all the clinics, it’s not always the cheapest exercise, so it’s a reward for them as well to see their little one make it on the biggest stage in Australia.

“There’s no easy games in the NPL obviously. We know what Glory are about, they like to keep the ball and move off the ball quickly. They may have a few of the boys pushing up into the A-League, but they’ve started the season really well and it just goes to show how strong they are through the age groups below.

“It’ll be a tough game, it always is, but we’re coming off a good win in the cup and want to continue that form and show them what we can do.”

The remainder of the Round Six matches take place at 3pm on Saturday.

The closeness of the competition is reflected by the fact the top three of Floreat Athena, Perth RedStar and Stirling Macedonia all sit on nine points, with the next four teams, including Glory, just two points behind.

Leaders Athena and RedStar are both coming off the back of successive losses. Floreat went down 3-0 at Cockburn City a fortnight ago, before going out of the Australia Cup to Stirling Macedonia. They host Gwelup Croatia on Saturday.

RedStar have lost their last two league games and were also dumped out of the cup, by Sorrento. This weekend they face an Armadale team who have scored 13 goals in their last two outings.

Third-place Stirling, who have won their last two, had their home against Cockburn postponed on Thursday.

Sorrento, in fourth, travel to bottom club Balcatta Etna, who are desperate for an upturn in form. Balcatta are still seeking their first league points this season, and after losing 6-0 at Armadale suffered a cup upset at the hands of fourth-tier Emerald FC.

Finally, it’s fifth-versus-sixth when Inglewood take on Bayswater City as both sides look to break into the top four.

Fixtures

NPLWA – Men’s Round Six

Friday (7.30pm): Perth Glory v Perth SC. Saturday (3pm): Armadale v Perth RedStar, Balcatta v Sorrento, Floreat Athena v Gwelup Croatia, Inglewood United v Bayswater City, Stirling Macedonia v Cockburn City.