Round Ball Australia 
Australia Cup R32. Design: Round Ball Australia
The Australia Cup round of 32 draw was conducted on Wednesday night, with just the one exclusively A-League matchup leading to plenty of cross pollination between the nation’s top flight and state NPL competitions.
Almost two years since Sydney FC bowed out of the Australia Cup to Victorian outfit Oakleigh Cannons in the quarter finals, the Sky Blues will return to the scene of the crime at Jack Edwards Reserve, in an effort to avenge their 2022 exit.
The round of 32 is arguably the best time for a member federation club to get drawn against an A-League team, as the games will begin on July 30, very early in pre-season for the summer clubs.
Before we get to this stage, four A-League clubs still need to decide the final entries to the round of 32. Brisbane Roar and the Newcastle Jets will travel to Darwin in late July to take on Perth Glory and Western United respectively, in the final play-off round.
Round Ball Australia takes a look at some of the most intriguing matchups in this year’s first round of the national stage.
Oakleigh Cannons v Sydney FC
They meet again…
Victoria’s Oakleigh Cannons pulled off a major upset against the Sky Blues two years ago in the Australia Cup quarterfinals, defeating Steve Corica’s men 2-1 at Jack Edwards Reserve to send a statement of intent.
Although Sydney will be out for revenge, this presents a perfect opportunity for Oakleigh to repeat their fortunes with a rebuild brewing for Ufuk Talay’s squad.
Blessed with high-profile coaches in the past decade including Miron Bleiberg and Arthur Papas, the Cannons possess a proud culture and history.
Although goal scorers from that famous night, Wade Dekker and Chris Lucas, have departed the club, keep an eye out for dynamic midfielder Oliver Kubilay who is due a breakout performance on the big stage.
A capacity of 4,000 at Oakleigh’s stadium won’t deter fans from coming out in numbers to furnish a cracking atmosphere in what should be another enthralling encounter.
Christian Montegan
Lambton Jaffas v Melbourne Victory
Lambton Jaffas, despite their status as a powerhouse of the Northern NSW NPL in recent years, will make their first appearance in eight years into the round of 32, their last visit to this stage (also their inaugural visit) saw them exit the competition away from home against Devonport City Strikers in 2016.
They will play host to the vanquished A-League Grand Finalists & two time Cup Champions Melbourne Victory, in a fixture which will see some Hunter young guns on the national stage alongside some former A-League players.
The might of Victory will underestimate the Jaffas at their own peril as they travel to Newcastle to take on a side that will likely feature former A-League players of the ilk of Ben Kennedy and Nikolai Topor-Stanley.
The Jaffas also boast some top performed stars of the NNSW competition in recent years, such as experienced striker Kale Bradbery, midfielder Michael Kantarovski (younger brother of former Newcastle Jet Ben Kantarovski) and defender Ben Hay.
Victory with their star-studded line up will no doubt enter the matchup as strong favourites away from home, but know all too well the heartbreak of a ‘cupset’ to NPL sides – need we hark back to their loss to APIA Leichhardt in 2018.
Chris Macpherson
South Melbourne v Wellington Phoenix
The giants of the old National Soccer League (NSL), South Melbourne, face the old foes across the ditch in the form of Giancarlo Italiano’s Wellington Phoenix.
The Nix are coming off their best-ever season in the A-League, achieving a second-place finish in the regular season and were inches away from appearing in their maiden Grand Final.
A belting atmosphere awaits at Lakeside Stadium filled with passion and colour, mirroring the positive vibes on the pitch as South Melbourne currently sits top of NPL Victoria after 18 rounds.
South Melbourne number nine Harry Sawyer is the player to watch, scoring a phenomenal free kick against Preston Lions in the previous round.
His physical presence, pace and hold-up play have the potential to cause havoc for a rock-solid Phoenix defence.
Christian Montegan
Rockdale Ilinden v (Newcastle Jets or Western United)
The pace setters and big improvers of the 2024 NSW NPL season, Rockdale have taken many by surprise by just how quickly they have opened up a significant lead in the NSW competition.
With a squad that boasts a spattering of top level and overseas experience both through import, So Kataoka who has played previously in the J2 League in Japan, striker Alec Urosevski who has played with Sydney FC and midfielder Blake Ricciuto who has plied his trade in the Uruguayan leagues as well as the Singapore Premier League.
Rockdale will lie in wait and have the benefit of not only taking on an out of season A-League outfit, but also the chance to take in their opponents’ Australia Cup form as they undertake their playoff match in Darwin.
Rockdale have previously taken on A-League opponents in both of their previous appearances in these final rounds of the Cup, having lost to both Sydney FC (4-2 in 2018) and narrowly to Melbourne Victory (3-2 in 2015’s Round of 16).
Chris Macpherson
Olympic Kingsway v Edgeworth Eagles
A tale of two varied levels of cup experience for these clubs. Olympic Kingsway have ground their way through the Football West preliminary rounds with success for the first time to make the round of 32 in 2024.
Meanwhile, their opponents Edgeworth Eagles will have experience on their side as they head to the national stages for the sixth time, the second most appearances of all Northern NSW sides, behind only Broadmeadow Magic who the Eagles eliminated in the final preliminary round.
The Eagles have made it to the round of 16 twice previously – in 2016 & 2019, interestingly both times they faced onerous travel heading to Cairns in 2016 & Darwin in 2019.
Some may view the travel as a challenge, however the Eagles have clearly used it to galvanise their squad on past occasions.
Both sides are in prime form in their leagues, having won five matches on the trot, the challenge for Edgeworth which will double down on their travel demands is that they like many sides from NSW, have a number of rescheduled catch up games due to weather.
Load management will be an interesting challenge for the Hunter based outfit in the lead up.
Chris Macpherson
Olympic v APIA Leichhardt
State of Origin has taken its prestige to another code. Queensland’s Olympic FC marks their fourth appearance at this stage of the competition as they prepare to tackle the colossus conqueror of New South Wales’ APIA Leichhardt in a mouth-watering affair.
APIA, famous for their 3-2 win over Melbourne Victory to reach a historic quarter-final in 2018, have started their season strongly in NPL NSW after 19 games to be two points clear of third place with a game in hand.
Form is completely the opposite for Brisbane Olympic, languishing fourth from bottom with only four wins in their first 13 games of the 2024 season.
Darwin Hearts v Hume City
Seven preliminary rounds later slogging it out in the Northern Territory, Darwin Hearts are set to make their Australia Cup debut against Victorian outfit Hume City.
Hearts have finished bottom of the NorZone Premier League in three of the past four campaigns, constructing one of the best feel-good stories of the competition to date as they aim to create further history.
A tough assignment awaits, as they will need to overcome an experienced team in Hume who are familiar with the latter stages of this event, reaching the semi-finals of the then FFA Cup.
Hot and humid conditions up north will favour Hearts with home advantage, but these two clubs are the sort of calibre that the neutrals will crave to make a deep run and spring a ‘cupset’ or two along the way.
Christian Montegan