- Sydney United are 3rd in the NPL New South Wales 2026, 44 points from 21 games.
- Blacktown City FC are 15th in the NPL New South Wales 2026, 18 points from 21 games, battling to escape the bottom of the table.
Blacktown are the underdogs
Blacktown City FC are the underdogs for Sunday's NPL New South Wales 2026 clash with Sydney United as the hosts come into the game in mixed-to-poor form and with a poor home record. Mark Crittenden's team are currently 15th in the table, 18 points from 21 matches and have won just 2, drawn 1 and lost 7 of their 10 games on home turf this season.
They've lost two in a row coming into this game, a 1-3 defeat at home to APIA Leichhardt FC and a 2-0 loss away to Marconi Stallions, but they had won 2-1 at Sutherland Sharks the weekend prior, so things have been tight. Crittenden has continued with his developmental game which is attack-minded, but also has his players ready to tighten up when games tighten up and it has given them some results.
United are the favourites
Sydney United are the clear favourites for this game, although Blacktown's recent record against them makes it less of a clear-cut prediction. Ante Juric has been in charge since 29th October 2024 and has United right in the thick of the NPL New South Wales 2026 finals race, 3rd in the standings on 44 points. They've also been in mixed form of late, winning 2, drawing 1 and losing 2 of their last 5 matches, but this includes a 1-0 win at home to SD Raiders FC and a 1-0 defeat away to Sydney FC Youth, so the margins of victory or defeat haven't been great in their recent outings.
Avoiding the draw is the play
The main selection for this NPL New South Wales 2026 contest will be Sydney United to win at 1.84 as they are the superior side, but Blacktown's good record in this fixture means that it might not be a walk in the park. Over 2.5 goals at 1.71 looks the better supporting wager.
Sydney United's game is all about game management, higher tempo and sustained pressure, and the way their team is built means that they are usually able to get their game flowing and dominate territory through the midfield. Blacktown like to use their wide areas and will sit back when the game tightens up.
This could be a chess match early on, but I'm expecting United's control to shine through if they can win the midfield battle and we should see goals scored at both ends.
