- Northcote City have won two, drawn one and lost two of their last five matches.
- Eltham Redbacks have won two, drawn one and lost two of their last five fixtures.
- Northcote City have won six, drawn three and lost just two of their 11 home games in NPL Victoria 2 2026, averaging 1.82 goals per game.
Two decent sides are going head to head on Friday night
Northcote City are currently placed 3rd on 43 points after 22 matches, while Eltham Redbacks are 6th on 32 points, also after 22 matches, in NPL Victoria 2 2026 - with the two sides sharing the points in a 1-1 draw in the only prior meeting between the two this season at Eltham Sports Club.
Northcote are the slightly favoured side at 1.77, ahead of Eltham at 3.52 and the draw at 3.96, which is a bit of a surprise given the hosts have been erratic on their own patch of late, while Eltham have been tough to beat on the road in recent months.
Steve Bebic's Northcote City have been built on a strong structural foundation, where compact shapes are deployed in order to transition quickly into counter-attacking moves. It's a set-up that isn't designed to produce free-flowing, end-to-end games of football - but it certainly can when Northcote play well.
The hosts have been shaky at home over the last few months with zero wins, one draw and two defeats from their last three, while the last meeting between these sides was a cagey 1-1 draw at Eltham, so there is enough in the recent form book to suggest the draw is live here.
A draw looks the way to go
A smart alternative play on the game might be both teams to score at 1.36 - a selection which looks good given Eltham's attacking edge and Northcote's sharp counters.
Mulcahy's men like to play on the front foot and press high up the pitch, while their passing is so quick and composed that they can crank up the tempo to such a level that it is almost impossible for the opposition to keep up with.
Their most recent results have included a 3-1 home win over North Geelong Warriors, a 1-1 away draw with North Sunshine Eagles SC and a 0-2 home defeat to Melbourne Srbija, which shows the variety of matchups they have been up against in recent weeks.
