Report by Tommy Doleman

John O'Reilly, left, and Jamie Harnwell are looking to build on a decent opening to the 2021 season

Armadale and Sorrento will kick off the Easter long weekend full of confidence as Round Three of the National Premier Leagues WA - Men's competition begins on Thursday.

Both sides are looking to build on top six finishes in 2020, with bright moments in the opening fortnight of this campaign providing further reason for optimism.

Sorrento have started their season unbeaten, while Armadale enter Thursday’s fixture at Alfred Skeet Reserve on the back of a 4-0 win away at defending champions ECU Joondalup.

It was a result which stunned many across the league, particularly after a 4-1 win for ECU when the sides met two weeks earlier in the Night Series third-place play-off.

But Armadale head coach John O’Reilly insisted he had seen signs of progress from a group he believes is better equipped to compete for longer in 2021.

“I think the guys had the capability of doing something like that,” he said of last weekend’s emphatic win.

“It’s a relatively new group with some new elements and we’re allowing them to gel and get to know how each other plays. It wasn’t quite a surprise, but to do that against the champions means they deserve recognition for effort they put in.

“Last year we were affected by injuries in the second half of the season and our form dipped off, but this year we’ve got a 19-man squad and I’m comfortable with them all. There’s no padding in there, there’s good competition for places and I think that will help us take the results further into 2021."

Armadale have made progress since O’Reilly joined the club in 2017, tasting the FFA Cup’s national Round of 32 a year later following success in the 2018 State Cup.

The former Shamrock Rovers and Swan United coach believes results such as last Saturday’s can be part of the team’s journey towards loftier ambitions.

“We’re always looking to raise our profile, so beating teams of notable stature like ECU Joondalup is part and parcel of what we are trying to achieve,” he said.

“Those results against the top clubs is the aim of the game really, because we hope the sides around us won’t get them and that’s what can help catapult us into the top half of the table.

“I want to taste finals and so do the boys. My ambition since joining Armadale has been to cement the club as a top-half team and get that cellar-dweller stigma out of the mindset.

“I think that’s now a potential achievement, so the next thing is to look towards finals, and get used to winning games which builds that winning mindset.

Sorrento, currently second, are another team looking to push their way into the mix for the top four, having so far drawn with Gwelup and defeated Cockburn.

The Gulls lost 2020 Golden Boot runner-up Cameron Teece to Perth SC in the off-season, but any potential worries over scoring have subsided with five goals in the first two matches.

Like their opponents, Sorrento have tasted the national stages of the FFA Cup and remain the only NPL side from WA to advance beyond the competition’s Round of 32. Head coach Jamie Harnwell said the club are striving to return to those levels in 2021.

“With Teecey leaving, we had to rejig things because he was such a focal point, but it’s given us an opportunity to try and share around the goals and ensure we have different ways of attacking which can cause teams problems,” Harnwell said.

“We’ve shown that in the first couple of games even though there’s still more work to do. Scott Witschge has come in and adapted really well to the number nine role having traditionally played as a wide player, so he’s relishing that challenge.

“The progress has been pleasing after a Night Series where things didn’t quite hit off. We still need to create in open play, have more of the ball and do better, but that will come and we will work on those things in the context of getting results each week.

“We haven’t been as successful overall as we’d like as a group. We’ve been thereabouts, finishing just outside the top four and just missing out in the cup, so there’s some unfinished business from mine and the players' point of view that we want to be challenging for trophies and involved in the big games at the end of the season.”

Sorrento’s trip to the south-eastern suburbs sees a clash of two sides who scored 14 goals between them in their two 2020 meetings, winning one apiece.

Last season’s fixture at Alfred Skeet Reserve ended 5-3 to O’Reilly’s side and Harnwell is hopeful his team can put in a 90-minute performance on Thursday night to continue their positive start and reverse that result.

“Armadale is always a tough team to play, whether it’s at their place or at home. We’re under no illusions that we’ll have to be at our best to get something out of the game to keep our unbeaten run going,” he said.

“It’s important that we turn up for every game confident in our ability, whilst also respecting the opposition. We aren’t the sort of team that can just cruise through a game, we need to be up and about from the first minute to the last.

“That’s what we’ve showed in the first couple of games and I want to see that again.”

Elsewhere on Thursday night, there’s a replay of last season’s Finals Series decider as Floreat Athena aim to maintain the division’s only 100% record against Perth SC, who also remain unbeaten and sit third.

Night Series winners Inglewood United and defending champions ECU face off at Inglewood Stadium on the same night, while two other sides looking to return to the winner's list, Bayswater City and Perth Glory, also meet.

On Saturday, Rockingham City will be on the hunt for back-to-back away wins as they travel north to face a Gwelup Croatia team still looking for their first league win of the season.

Balcatta will similarly look to build on last weekend’s fine 3-2 win over Bayswater when they host a Cockburn side aiming to register their first points of 2021.

ROUND 3 NPLWA - Men's fixtures

Thursday 1 April

Armadale v Sorrento (7pm)
Bayswater City v Perth Glory (7.15pm)
Inglewood United v ECU Joondalup (7.30pm)
Floreat Athena v Perth SC (7.30pm)

Saturday 3 April

Gwelup Croatia v Rockingham City (3pm)
Balcatta v Cockburn City (3pm)