The Hahn Australia Cup Round of 32 gets underway on Tuesday evening, as clubs from all corners of the country battle it out on the national stage.
Nunawading City will be hoping to continue their fairytale run from the third tier of Victoria when they take on Darwin Olympic in one of the most compelling games of the round.
Elsewhere, Stirling Macedonia fly the flag for Western Australia in Melbourne when they take on Avondale FC, and the Peninsula Power have the opportunity to claim the first A-League scalp of the round when they host the Western Sydney Wanderers.
Read our preview of the Matchday One action below.
Darwin Olympic v Nunawading City
Kickoff: 7.00pm ACST (local) / 7.30pm AEST
Venue: Darwin Football Stadium
Broadcast: 10Play or the Football Australia YouTube Channel
Tickets
Darwin Olympic are on the precipice of history. If they can make it past Nunawading City on Tuesday evening, they will become the first team from the Northern Territory to win a game on the national stage of the Australia Cup.
Standing in their way are a team from the third tier of Victorian competition whose fairytale run to the Round of 32 has already turned heads.
Nunawading are only the sixth side in competition history to reach this stage of the tournament, competing in the third tier of their state. Fellow Victorian teams South Springvale and FC Melbourne Srbija have been victorious, while Balmain Tigers, Coomera Colts and Gold Coast Knights fell at this hurdle.
Nunawading’s Cup run – including a stunning 4-0 victory over NPL team Hume City to get here – is contrasted by their stuttering league form, where they are in serious risk of relegation into the state leagues.
Meanwhile, the home side is flying high in the Northern Territory Premier League, sitting comfortably on top of the table and nine points clear of second place.
Christian Mukudju scored their only goal and a decisive penalty in their shootout victory over Mindil Aces in the Northern Territory Cup Final. He will be hoping to repeat his heroics in the Round of 32.
Avondale FC v Stirling Macedonia
Kickoff: 7.30pm AEST / 5.30pm AWST
Venue: Green Gully Reserve
Broadcast: 10Play or the Football Australia YouTube Channel
Tickets
Victoria’s Avondale FC are no strangers to the latter stages of the Hahn Australia Cup, taking Sydney FC to extra-time in the quarter-finals in 2018 and falling at the Round of 16 in 2021 and 2022.
They will be favourites against a Stirling Macedonia side who are hoping to make the Round of 16 for the first time in their history.
Stirling Macedonia currently sit fifth in the WA NPL. Their road to the Round of 32 was built on an incredible defensive effort, conceding only one goal in four matches.
They defeated last year’s entrants Inglewood United 1-0 thanks to an extra-time goal from Alex Tanevski to advance to the national stage. They’re no strangers to a close game this year, needing penalties to get past Western Knights and earn the right to that game against Inglewood.
Former Celtic player and Scotland international Leigh Griffiths is set to star for Stirling Macedonia as they hope to cause an upset.
Avondale are currently second in the NPL Victoria competition behind fellow Round of 32 competitors Heidelberg United. They have been perennial contenders over the past few seasons and this year is no different as they prepare to become a foundation club of the Australian Championship.
Manyluak Aguek is the player to watch for Avondale. He has scored 13 goals in the league this season – the most for Avondale – and the South Sudan international will be hoping to make his mark on the national stage.
Peninsula Power v Western Sydney Wanderers
Kickoff: 7.30pm AEST
Venue: AJ Kelly Park
Broadcast: Paramount+
Tickets
Peninsula Power return to the Final Rounds of the Hahn Australia Cup hoping to become the first team to topple an A-League Men’s club this year.
This is the fifth occasion that the NPL Queensland team has made it to the Round of 32. They fell at this stage in 2017, 2021 and 2023, but made the quarter-finals in 2022.
If they were to cause a ‘Cupset’ on Tuesday evening, it would be the first time that they have defeated A-League Men opposition.
Peninsula Power are currently third in the league. They defeated Cairns side Marlin Coast Rangers 3-2 in a rollicking game in June to earn the right to take on the Wanderers on the national stage.
While the Power will be hoping to cause an upset, the Wanderers will be hoping it is business as usual as they begin their pre-season. They have never lifted the Cup and will be hoping to change all that this year.
It is also an opportunity for the Wanderers to give game time to youngsters who have impressed in the NPL, potentially including the likes of new scholarship signings Alaat Abdul Rahman, Ricky Fransen and Ben Mewett.
