- Devonport City Strikers have won their opening home game (2-0) and are yet to concede at home in NPL Tasmania 2026.
- Kingborough Lions have only conceded 5 goals in their one NPL Tasmania 2026 away trip, a 5-1 defeat to South Hobart.
- Kingborough have won 4 of their last 5 games, but their most recent away outing ended in a 5-1 thrashing by South Hobart.
Tasty local clash with bragging rights at stake
NPL Tasmania 2026 leaders Devonport City Strikers will host Kingborough Lions in a tasty fixture that is sure to have extra spice on Saturday afternoon.
Devonport City Strikers have made a perfect start to the NPL season, picking up 9 points from their opening 3 matches, while Kingborough are looking to close the gap to the early leaders with 6 points from their first 3 games in 5th place.
The two sides haven’t been shy of upsetting the odds in recent years and Kingborough recorded a 2-1 victory on their own turf in NPL Tasmania 2025.
But Devonport City Strikers are the slight favourites here at 1.96, which looks very fair considering the hosts are yet to drop a point or concede a goal at home this term, while they have won each of their last 3 matches overall.
Tom Ballantyne’s men beat Launceston United 2-0 in their only home game so far, and followed that with a 4-2 victory at Clarence Zebras.
A well-drilled 4-2-3-1 system has allowed Devonport to control matches and dominate with a possession-based style under Ballantyne, but they need to find the right moments to release their creative number-10 to unlock defences.
Kingborough will likely play a more direct style, with new boss Jon Fenech instilling a combative, high-tempo style that allows his high-work-rate forwards and dynamic midfielders to thrive when on the break and in transitions.
Goals expected in a contrasting clash of styles
Both of these sides can score and concede goals, but there has been little correlation between games involving Devonport and Kingborough this season. That’s why we’re backing Over 2.5 goals in this match, which looks a good price at 1.21.
Kingborough may have won 4 of their last 5 in all competitions but they were hammered 5-1 in their sole NPL Tasmania 2026 road trip to South Hobart.
Devonport will look to control the tempo, while Kingborough will look to press relentlessly and disrupt their hosts.
The contrast in styles could lead to an open match in which both teams will likely be looking for a win and we’re expecting an exciting encounter.
Devonport are the form team, but home advantage should help them edge what will be a close contest, with Kingborough’s superior head-to-head record across the last 5 meetings suggesting they are capable of causing an upset (W3 of the last 5), having won twice at Devonport in that run.
