This weekend is the final round of the Isuzu UTE A-League 2022/23 regular season with plenty at stake for every club outside of Premiers Melbourne City, and also means the four last-placed sides will participate in the Australia Cup Final Rounds Playoffs.
Five teams have guaranteed their status ahead of the upcoming finals series, being City, Adelaide United, Central Coast Mariners, Western Sydney Wanderers and most recently Sydney FC. The final spot is yet to be locked in but Wellington Phoenix, who currently occupy sixth, are the odds on favourites.
Although the teams playing finals has virtually been confirmed, adding another layer of drama to the equation is what the implications are for the teams at the other end of the table.
They will be doing everything they can to automatically qualify for the Australia Cup 2023 and avoid finishing in the bottom four places.
The sides who finish between 9th and 12th will meet in the Australia Cup 2023 Final Rounds Playoffs with teams ranked 9th and 10th playing the clubs which finish 12th and 11th respectively.
So while the top six may be out of reach for some this weekend, the desire to finish 7th or 8th and circumvent a playoff berth will certainly be a crucial incentive.
The 10 A-League Men’s outfit will then be joined by 22 Member Federation clubs from a variety of levels and locations from right across Australia to make up the final 32 teams.
We’ve crunched the numbers to examine the potential permutations for the bottom six teams heading into the final matchday:
Perth Glory (7th – 29 points)
- A win over Western United would avoid the Playoff match and a potential sixth-place finish.
- A draw could be enough but only if one of Newcastle Jets or Melbourne Victory don’t win.
- A loss and they could drop to as low as 11th depending on other results.
Newcastle Jets (8th – 29 points)
- A win over Sydney FC would avoid the Playoff match.
- A draw could be enough but only if Perth Glory and Western United draw and Melbourne Victory fail to beat Brisbane.
- A loss and they will drop into a Playoff spot.
Western United (9th – 29 points)
- A win over Perth Glory would avoid the Playoff match.
- A draw would be enough if Newcastle Jets lose to Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory and Brisbane Roar draw.
- A loss and they will drop to 10th.
Melbourne Victory (10th – 28 points)
- A win over Brisbane Roar could avoid a Playoff match, but would need one of Perth Glory, Newcastle Jets or Western United to lose.
- A draw could be enough if Newcastle Jets lose and there is a winner between Perth Glory and Western United due to a stingier goal difference.
- A loss and they could finish as low as 12th if Macarthur win.
Brisbane Roar (11th – 27 points)
- A win over Melbourne Victory could avoid a Playoff match but would require Perth Glory and Western United to draw, or if there is a winner in that match, then Newcastle cannot beat Sydney.
- A draw will not be enough to avoid a Playoff match.
Macarthur FC (12th – 26 points)
- Consigned to a Playoff match but a win over Wellington Phoenix would move them off the bottom of the ladder and potentially as high as ninth, pending other results.
- A draw or loss keeps them at the foot of the ladder.
Australia Cup 2023 Final Rounds Playoffs (A-League Men)
Matches: 9th (home) vs. 12th (away) / 10th (home) vs. 11th (away)
Dates: TBC
Venues: TBC
Kick-offs: TBC
Broadcast: Live and free on Network 10 via 10Play
