- Malvern have won four of their last five VPL2/NPL Victoria 3 matches and lost once.
- Essendon Royals have scored 17 goals in their last five league matches.
- Malvern City have the edge in the head-to-head record, winning 2-1 away at Essendon in March 2026, and drawing 1-1 in league play June 2025.
Malvern City are VPL2/NPL Victoria 3 table-toppers
Malvern City are currently at the top of the VPL2/NPL Victoria 3 with 37 points from 15-16 matches, depending on which season they have played more in, but they have been equally dominant in either.
Adrian Zahra, Phillip Riccobene and Zac Kocankovski are the defensive staples of this Essendon Royals side, but they'll need to remain composed against a Malvern City that has been scoring freely in recent weeks.
Fausto De Amicis' side is a top-level, pressure-packed side, who are playing a vertical, press-to-score style that is perfect for the summer heat, but they will need to adapt to showery, cool conditions at Kooyong Park on Saturday.
De Amicis has implemented a system at Malvern that is highly aggressive and has led to some dominant attacking displays. Stephen MacDonald and Jordan Brett have been in particularly good scoring form for Malvern, who went on a blitz in May scoring 14 goals in their five games, including a 5-0 and a 4-1 win.
However, a 2-1 home defeat to Box Hill put pay to their four-match winning streak in the league, but the hosts should fancy their chances against Essendon, who are currently battling it out for promotion in the 3rd-5th position with 24-27 points from 15-16 games.
Essendon Royals are a tough team to predict
Essendon Royals have been inconsistent throughout the season, but are now mixing in well in the promotion battle. Michael Ferrante has built a team with great character and depth and he has done well to guide the club into promotion contention.
Essendon's form has been inconsistent in recent matches, winning 5-1 and 8-0, but also suffering narrow defeats, and this could be another tough game for the visitors. Essendon's midfield is experienced and can control the tempo of the game, but Malvern's vertical style will make the ball travel faster.
Takumi Niwa is the spark for Essendon, crossing balls and running at defences, while Jordan Adeyemi, Dean Clarke and Josh Markovski lead the line, three players who all contributed to the 8-0 demolition of Springvale.
Malvern City are 2.16 favourites to win against Essendon Royals, who are 2.72, with the draw available at 3.68. Malvern are on a great run, but Essendon can make an impact on any given day, so we're going with the hosts to just win a goal-laden encounter.
Over 2.5 goals is at 1.48, meaning the bookies are anticipating an exciting clash between two teams who both have an attacking style. This game could turn into a physical, scrappy affair depending on how the players adapt to the conditions, but Malvern have the upper hand in form and home ground advantage.