Central Districts Lions v South Adelaide Panthers, Sat Mar 17 at 7:45pm at Starplex

After the retirement of Rick Fox lookalike Paul Vandenbergh, Centrals were dealt a harsh blow when Zane Reeves went down with an injury two minutes into the Blitz. Coach Ricky Simpson has added a lot of youth to the squad, and Jarrod Graves, Justin Clayton and Jarred Hammond will have increased responsibilities this year. The interest for the Panthers will be the performance of new import Ken "Coach" Carter. Point guard Carter played most recently in Kuwait, and showed in a recent trial game that he has the strength to post up defenders, as well as shoot the three. South will also suit big man Steve Pilkington who returns from a year in London.

Norwood Flames v Sturt Sabres, Sat Mar 17 at 8:15pm at Mars

Rupert Sapwell's Flames were a whisker away from a Grand Final last year, losing to Forestville by 2 in the preliminary final. David Cooper is back at the Flames after establishing himself as a defensive force with the 36ers, and had an incredible 36 rebounds in his last ABA game. Rookie Sabre coach Liam Flynn has been given the difficult task of managing Woollacott medallist Darren Ng's court time this seaon, but Sturt fans should get to see more of fellow 36ers squad member Marcus Ng, who showed flashes of potential at the Blitz, in which he was selected in the all-star five.

North Adelaide Rockets v West Adelaide Bearcats, Sat Mar 17 at 8:15pm at Hillcrest

Even without Dusty Rychart and Ryan Kersten, North's men would be favourites to win this year's Central ABL. Their preparation over summer has been exquisite, taking out both the Metro League in December and the pre-season Blitz two weeks ago, both by large margins. Rookie coach Justin Schueller has retooled the Rockets' offensive arsenal and made good use of the Blitz and a few games in Melbourne in February. Last year's season provided great experience for West youngsters Rory Craddock, Anthony Spadavecchia and Chris Molitor, and with the addition of Brendan Mann, Blake Truslove, and Kris Davis, there'll be expectations of post-season action. This should be the match of the round.

Southern Tigers v Woodville Warriors, Sat, Mar 17 at 8:15pm at Morphett Vale

This game features two of the men's league's four rookie coaches, both former members of the teams they are coaching. Jason Bray is no stranger to coaching success, winning an Under 18 Melbourne Classic in 1999, and he takes over a group that won a title in 2005, albeit with Matt Elder. Woodville surprised many with their performance at the Blitz and will look to carry this form into the season. Heath Jury takes over at Southern after assisting Billy Hopkins last year, and would be looking forward to full seasons from Brad Gerlach and Matt Clarke, both of whom missed games due to injury last year. With the continuing improvement of Dan Lalic, Southern will challenge for a finals berth this year.

Forestville Eagles v Eastern Mavericks, Sat Mar 17 at 8:15pm at Wayville

2006 premiers Forestville enter a new era in the year 1 PD (Post Dix). Kane Oakley (Cairns) is a handy replacement, and Matt Sutton has benefited from a year with the 36ers, though Forestville must also fill the gap left by Brenton Campbell. The Mavs will field a new-look team this year without Jacob Holmes, Ben Madgen, Brad Davis and Ben Trebilcock, but have added scoring machine Jye Watson, as well as Phil Modra and Shane Breheny. Eastern have been Forestville's Kryptonite at Mt. Barker in recent years, but not at Wayville. Brad Hill's injury and a pre-season achillies tear to recruit Jarrod Younie will make things difficult for the Mavs early in the season.