Young players hungry to impress ahead of Festival of Football NPL fixture between Perth Glory and Sorrento

Perth Glory’s National Premier League coach John Walmsley is expecting a compelling fixture when his side face off against with the Sorrento Football Club at Retravision Stadium on Saturday. The match will be played as part of the Great Southern Festival of Football that runs from May 22-28 and will follow the NPL women’s fixture between Perth RedStar and Hyundai NTC. Glory currently sit seventh on the NPL ladder with a record of four wins, one draw and four losses while Sorrento have tallied three wins, one draw and five losses across their 2023 campaign. “I know all the lads are really excited, we train Friday night and then have the game on Saturday,” John Walmsley said. “Hopefully we get to see a little bit of Albany before or after the game as well, we’re really looking forward to it. “For us every game is important and the league is really tight this year. “It’s a really crucial game for us to bounce back from a loss last week, we’re a good side so we can create chances and score goals.” The NPL side functions as a youth squad for Glory’s A-league side and field players from an age range of 16-20 years of age. Walmsley said two of his regular starters will not feature in Saturday’s contest because of international under-17s duty with Australia, providing an opportunity for fringe players to impress on the big stage. “This week because of a couple of the boys being away on international duty, there will be some opportunity for lads to get some minutes,” he said. “We’ve got some players with a point to prove which is important. “One thing that we’ve found this year is that we’ve been good to watch so anyone there on the day will be able to watch a really positive and entertaining game of football. “Sorrento have some good players, they are quite organised and disciplined but we’ve got a lot of players in attack who have a lot of pace. “We’ve got wingers that can get in behind, hopefully we can be good in possession and be exciting to watch so we can score some goals. Sorrento FC coach Steve McGarry said his team was looking forward to making the trip to Albany. McGarry is a former player and former first team assistant coach for Glory’s A-league outfit, coaching between 2020-2022. He also played for St Mirren, Ross County and Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership in Scotland. “I’ve been down on a couple of trips down to Busselton and one down in Albany previously but this time is the first time coming down as Sorrento head coach,” McGarry said. “It’s always something the guys look forward to when the fixtures come out and I think generally the turnout at the ground has been pretty good. “It’s great for a couple of the local clubs and coaches that come out and watch the local training sessions. “It gives them an opportunity to have a look at an NPL side and what they do in terms of preparation for a match and the tactical set-up. “The club, coaches and players that have played in this fixture have always experienced a welcome and it’s always been a really good weekend. “The whole focus is about getting down there and putting a show on for the local community and we’ll be 100 percent focused and ready to get the three points. “I’ve only been at the club (Sorrento) for a couple of months so it also gives me the opportunity to get to know the players on a close and more personal basis. “We’ve got a relatively small squad, we’ve brought a couple of younger guys from the 18s and 20s after losing some guys. and they’ve done fantastic well. ‘There is is massive scope for improvement but we’re happy with how things are travelling.” McGarry is expecting a hungry opposition who are out to prove themselves on Saturday. “I’ve probably coached the majority of their players through the academy (Perth Glory) so I know a lot of them,” he said. “These young kids will be trying...they’ll be hungry. “It’s always a tough task against a young Glory team but we’re also pretty confident in terms of having a reasonably good week last week. “We’ll go into this fixture full of confidence.” Both sides will train from 6.30pm to 7pm on Friday at Retravision Stadium with the men’s fixture set to kick off at 4pm on Saturday. A local Great Southern Soccer Association match will also be played at 11.30am before the two NPL matches. Regional Festival of Football Schedule Thursday Part two of Level 4 Referee Course at Albany Soccer Pavilion (6pm-9pm) Friday Free open training session at Retravision Stadium (6.30pm-7pm) Saturday GSSA senior match (11.30am) Hyundai NTC v Perth RedStar (2pm) Sorrento v Perth Glory (4pm) Sunday Football West coaching session with local match officials (10.30am-12.30pm)