The annual MWFA v Manly United select match will be played this Wednesday, at 7pm, at Cromer Park, and it is shaping as a clash not to be missed.
On one hand you have the MWFA Select side who are coming off a strong 2-1 victory over the Northern Suburbs. They’re up against a Manly United side who are building towards their season opener in two weeks with a toughly contested 0-0 with Sydney Olympic last weekend.
MWFA Select will be looking to keep their winning form going and there’s no better way for them to challenge themselves than by coming up against a top-tier team. For Manly this will be one of their final two matches they play before the season starts, given that you’d expect Adam Griffiths to field a pretty strong side.
Luke Cunrow will keep MUFC on high alert.
He is highly regarded at the CC Strikers and was dangerous last week against Northern Suburbs. In their latest win he displayed exactly that as he led from in front with a great goal after an accurate pass from Strikers teammate Jim Van Weeren. The former Manly United junior and last season’s PL Player of the Year is extremely passionate and will leave it all out on the field in this clash.
Josh Ciabatti is another of the MWFA players to watch out for.
He won the PL Golden Boot of the Year last campaign representing Brookvale and he can bang them in with ease. He can also win you a game off his own back, such is his talent and dedication.
When you assess Manly United’s side, it’s incredibly difficult to go past the likes of Seiya Kambayashi and Kieren Paull. They were both heavily involved last weekend in all things defensive.
Going back when he was first introduced to Manly, Kambayashi had this to say: “Personally, I would want to help the team with lots of assists.” He assisted in a different way vs Olympic, but against MWFA, he’ll have the perfect chance to display his offensive arsenal.
As for Paull, the former Mariners youth player is the ultimate professional and as a right-back, he will no doubt be heavily involved again in this encounter as he helps stop any potential MWFA attacking threats. It’s a short recovery time, but someone like him, well he’ll live for that.
