Balwyn manager Gabriel Zeballos says that he is confident his side will defeat Collingwood this evening, guaranteeing his club a berth in the Series Futsal Australia tournament next month.
If Balwyn defeats Collingwood, its place in SFA is locked and will deny Brunswick a ‘Wildcard’ slot.
CLICK HERE for more on the permutations of this evening’s matches.
Also, if Balwyn defeat Collingwood, the latter will be awarded the wooden spoon and suffer instant relegation to the State Championships after just one season in Series Futsal Victoria.
Balwyn and Collingwood are no strangers, having shared training facilities and enjoyed a number of practice games in recent times, but Zeballos says that hie team will leave nothing on the table to secure the win.
“At the start of the current season we set out to finish in the top three and therefore play in Series Futsal Australia,” he said.
“Unfortunately for us things didn’t go exactly to plan but we still have a real chance to play in this massive tournament. We know we need to win and we will be doing everything we can to get the win.
“Collingwood need to win to avoid relegation so we know they will come out strong. By no means is this an easy game and we will not be underestimating them. They are a good team, very unlucky and their position on the ladder is not a fair indication of their hard work and talent.
“They have been very competitive and as we have seen this season and any team can beat any other team on their day but we are respectfully confident of getting the result we need.”
Balwyn was the surprise packet of the last Series Futsal Australia tournament in Perth, West Australia.
The Victoria squad was within 30 seconds of advancing to the final – beaten in the last minute of extra time by eventual champs Claremont Cambio Cumbre.
Zeballos is keen to go even deeper into this year’s tournament.
“Playing in SFA for us is a big deal – we want the opportunity to showcase who we are and what we are capable of,” he said.
“We made it through to the semi finals in Perth and we had a fantastic tournament and really put FC Balwyn on the map.
“Hoever, we feel we deserved more. Getting another opportunity to play against some of the best teams in Australia would be great.“
Balwyn takes on Collingwood tonight at 8pm, so to see the best futsal and entertainment in Victoria, get yourself to the Thomastown Futsal Oz Stadium, or CLICK HERE for live stream coverage, starting at 6:50pm AEDT.
ROUND 21 FIXTURES
7pm: CF Brunswick v Fitzroy FC
8pm: FC Balwyn v FC Collingwood
9:10pm: Pascoe Vale FC v Hume FC
10:10pm: Ashburton FC v Metropolitan FC