- Inner West Hawks have never lost to Granville Rage in Football NSW League Two, the last meeting finishing 3-3 in February 2026.
- Granville Rage are in 11th place and Inner West Hawks 10th on the NSW League 2 table going into this weekend's fixtures.
- Granville could jump into the top five with a win, while Inner West could solidify their mid-table status.
Hawks have a history of frustrating Rage
Inner West Hawks have never lost to the Granville Rage in New South Wales' Football NSW League 2 and come into this matchup with a strong mental edge on their rivals.
Rage will be looking to claim a first ever victory against the Hawks to make this fixture more even-steven when they meet at Garside Park on Saturday and create a fairy tale narrative of their own.
League Two sides have been left without a publically-appointed head coach ahead of this round, but a look at their tactics in recent matches shows a common theme of one coach that is possession-driven and another that likes to sit deep and counterattack.
Hawks’ defence is solid, but Rage can strike
Granville are very much an attacking side, building up their moves in midfield and looking to overload defenders when they push forward. They are led by a creative pivot in Ante Tomic, who has been the driving force behind their recent chances and chances created.
Inner West have been set up to be a defensive unit this season, with the five-men unit at the back usually keeping things tight and their midfield structured to allow them to get forward quickly. Peter Phillips is a danger from set pieces as he demonstrated by opening the scoring and the Hawks are always a threat from corners.
Joshua Lazzaro will be a threat in the final third after scoring in recent matches for the Hawks while Timothy Borg-Williams has been involved in some of the best chances Rage have had in recent fixtures.
Hawks are worth the slight favouritism
Inner West are the marginal favourites with the bookies at 2.43 with Rage 2.29 and the draw 3.78, which seems about right for what could be a tight match with a lot of chances for both teams. The Hawks seem to have a bit more about them in the defence and, with a history of getting the better of Rage, are worth backing.
Granville's results have been volatile in the past five League Two fixtures, winning two and losing three, which includes a 5-2 home win over Fraser Park and a 9-0 away loss to the same team. Inner West's last five in the competition have seen them win one, draw two and lose two, which included a 2-2 draw at Nepean.
Granville's attack is in top form with eight goals scored in the previous five, but their defence is also leaking goals at a rate of 15 in the same period, so it is hard to see them keeping the Hawks out. But goals on both sides is the order of the day here with over 2.5 match goals a heavy favourite at 1.36, which matches the trend of recent head-to-heads.
Samuel Bortolazzo has been a goalkeeping hero for the hosts with some superb saves to keep them in games, but they are vulnerable at the defence and an open game of end-to-end action is likely given the conditions are favourable.