Western Sydney scored their first ever goal against Brisbane, which gave them their first ever win in the A-League. With incredibly solid defence the Wanderers stopped the Brisbane Roar's attack cold and Mark Bridge converted one of the many opportunities the Wanderers created. The loss of Dino Kresinger to injury forced a chance up front, with Joey Gibbs making his second A-League appearance, the first being for Sydney FC in a grand final some years ago. He provided the movement and speed that was sorely lacking from the Croatian import Dino. The Wanderers work-rate was one of the highest ever seen in the league this season and they will fancy their chances. If the Wanderers attack continues to gel and their defence stays rock solid they will expect to break their home duck and take all three points.

Melbourne Heart were absolutely woeful at home against an only slightly less than woeful Central Coast Mariners outfit. Melbourne Heart controlled possession but did very little with it, mostly knocking the ball around the back between their defenders and keeper. Their defence was somewhat solid but that was more to do with the fact that the Mariners were also out of sorts. They need a huge improvement if they are going to threaten the Wanderers. It will not be likely that Tony Popovic will allow the Heart to play kick about in defence. As usual the threat of David Williams will remain in mind, the quick forward will have to be marked hard and firmly to avoid letting him get in behind the Wanderers. The Wanderers should get the job done, Ono had a quiet game against Brisbane, the Heart will need to watch out. A win for either team will see them catapult into 3rd or 4th depending on goal difference.

Prediction: 3-0 Wanderers.

The "NSW Derby" was once a very fierce affair but Sydney's recent drop down the table and the Mariners duels with Brisbane have seen it steadily drop in importance to either team. Sydney FC won very ugly last week, with Perth Glory imploding with their red card and defensive errors to hand the three points to Sydney FC. Perth were also denied a clear cut penalty late in the match. Sydney have yet to really earn a victory and will need to improve massively if they are a chance against the Mariners. Internal rumblings have shaken the squad, with Del Piero frustrated at the lack of ability in the rest of the squad as he trained away from the team earlier in the week, and young gun Petratos coming together with goalkeeping coach Kalac in mid-week. Time will tell if this has shattered the morale of the squad or if it will bring them together.

The Mariners got the job done on the road. That was the main positive coming out of their match against Melbourne Heart. Pedj Bojic scored a nicely taken free kick to take the goods and they did just enough to hold the poor Heart at bay. Mariners have been solid but not outstanding, with 2 wins, 1 draw and a loss leaving them 3rd on the table they have stayed on track, kept 'under the radar' while Arnie had a whinge about marquees and not having any money to take the pressure off his team. Sydney FC are due for a result that matches their recent performances and for an under performance by Del Piero, and the Mariners are the perfect team to bring Sydney FC back to reality.

Prediction: 2-0 Mariners.

Perth Glory's stadium woes and their brutish style of physical play have dominated the headlines in recent weeks. The loss of hard man Jacob Burns will cause some of their midfield steel to be tempered. Last week they lost a game they were the far better team in, because of a stupid penalty and red card to a central defender and a defensive error from keeper Danny Vukovic. They were also failed by the officials who refused to give a clear penalty for handball toward the end of their 2-1 loss to Sydney FC. Perth dominated the game but were unable to score enough of their chances and it cost them in the end. They were very unhappy at the failure to award the penalty, with everyone calling it a penalty in the post-match washup. They used the Grand Final controversy as a motivator to win their match against Brisbane Roar, so it is likely they will take more motivation from the recent loss into this game as well.

Newcastle have been the surprise package of the A-League so far, equal top of the table with 3 wins from 4 games. Their attack has been deadly, and marquee Heskey has been in the right spot consistently to put away his chances well. Their midfield and defence is less impressive but those players are doing their role, and Birghitti is fulfilling the promise that many had seen in him from several years ago. They have yet to lack energy and have been taking the chances when they come to the team. This is one of the hardest games of the round to pick, with both sides in good form and with well settled tactics. The loss of Burns perhaps tips the game in favour of the Jets but it could go either way.

Prediction: 1-1 Draw.

Brisbane were completely and utterly outplayed by Western Sydney in their 1-0 loss at home. To appease their supporters they need a much better showing against top of the table Adelaide. Broich and Berisha were marked out of the game, with Berisha dropping very deep to receive the ball and being frustrated enough that he started unleashing long drives from outside the box. The Roar attack were limited to throwing long balls into the channel and hoping their fast players could get onto the end of them. Their attack faltered and the goal they conceded was from slack marking on a corner. The Wanderers carved the Roar apart at stages so their defence will need to improve.

Last week I said that if Jeronimo couldn't get the job done for Kosmina then the Reds would be in trouble. Luckily for Kosmina he did put away his chances, even if they came in between an Olympic Gold Medal level dive. Inexplicably he was cleared of the dive by the FFA and is free to play in this match. Adelaide were handed that win on a silver platter by the officials who also missed a blatant offside in the lead up to Cassio's goal. The challenge for Adelaide is if they can win when the officials are not on their side, which is often the case when playing away. Kosmina has continued to trade in his stock of motivation over tactical ability and the question this week will be if he can pull off the same thing that Tony Popovic did in strangling the Roar attack. This could be a high scoring affair.

Prediction: 3-2 Roar.

This match is an unusual match, being played on a Monday rather than on the Sunday as the FFA look to innovative scheduling to improve crowds. Melbourne Victory lost 2-1 to Newcastle away in their last start, although Marcos Rojas should have done better with his numerous opportunities to change the tide of the game early on. They were quite dominant in the first half but fell away badly in the second as they conceded a brace of goals to Emile Heskey. They were scrappy in defence and unable to finish in attack. Thompson grabbed a consolation goal late in the match when a horrid clearance fell nicely for him. Ange's men are rooted to the bottom of the table but a win could lift them as high as 6th.

Wellington were absolutely livid at their treatment at the hands of the match officials in their 3-1 loss to Adelaide at Hindmarsh. Multiple contentious decisions all went against them, red cards, offsides not given, offsides incorrectly given against them, diving not punished were some of the litany of complaints. Huysegems again scored for his new club and looks to be a great signing. Defensively they were poor, conceding their first goal after being unable to clear the ball on the edge of the box. Sigmund should never have let Jeronimo get into a position to allow the dive that cost him a red card and the were torn apart by Cassio and Jeronimo despite an offside non-call. If they can harness the fire of their defeat they could inflict more punishment on the Victory.

Prediction: 2-1 Wellington.