Preview: Broadmeadow Magic v Adelaide City
After opening the 2026 Australian Championship with two home games against Avondale FC and Wests APIA, Adelaide City travel to Newcastle to face its third Group B opponent, Broadmeadow Magic.
Adelaide City enters its first away match of the competition seeking its first win after collecting one point in its opening two games.
Coach Vas Parhas reflected on the start of the Australian Championship campaign, seeing his side’s opening games as standard-raisers and validation that his team has the quality to compete with the best.
“Firstly, you just see that the level is a lot higher than our regular NPL SA level in terms of the quality of players. The depth in these squads is incredible,” said Parhas.
“The challenge for us has been not knowing that we're in this competition as well until very late in the season and facing sides that have been in it before and have learned from year one what's expected.
“I think we've shown that we can score against anyone. We created more chances than Avondale in Round One, and even in the second game, we weren't at our best against APIA but we still managed to score and we take a lot from that.”
Meanwhile, Broadmeadow has been Group B's early surprise package, leading the way after two games with a draw at home against APIA, where the Magic won the extra point in the penalty shootout, and a statement win over Avondale in Melbourne.
Despite being surrounded by the least fanfare in the lead-up to the competition, Vas Parhas isn't surprised by the quality Jim Cresnar’s side has shown.
“They’re a surprise in the sense that they have managed to secure some really important points so far, but not a surprise in the sense that we knew they would be a hard-working, compact side that is highly organised, highly structured, very disciplined, and terrific in transition,” shared Parhas.
Broadmeadow boast former Newcastle Jets goalkeeper Noah James, Luis Lara Delgado, a 29-goal striker in the 2026 NPL NNSW, including a whopping eight on the final matchday, and Jared Baker, who scored a brace in his side’s win away at Avondale on Sunday.
“We'll have to move the ball fast,” Parhas said about the Broadmeadow match.
“We'll have to move off the ball quickly, and we'll have to be disciplined ourselves because they can hurt you. They've got some excellent, sharp players in attack on the wings, and yeah, we saw that against Avondale. They really were outstanding on the break and very disciplined defensively.”
Parhas believes Broadmeadow’s strong start to the competition has blown Group B wide open, but admits his side will need to start scoring more points sooner rather than later against opponents who will only improve.
“I think the Broadmeadow results have thrown [the group] open a bit. We know that when we are at our best, we can beat any side in the group and we will approach the rest of this tournament with that hunger and that belief that we can absolutely compete.
“We will leave no stone unturned. You string together a couple of wins on the bounce and all of a sudden I think it becomes a very, very tight group.”
Adelaide City’s squad now embark on three consecutive away trips. While Parhas admits it poses a new challenge, he backs his club to get the details right and replicate the success of other Australian Championship clubs on the road.
“It’s a very long time since the club was playing in a national competition where there was a thing like regular travel. It is a new experience for everyone, but we are keeping an open mind and trying to be organised to get the details right.
“We’ve got good people, good staff, and great sponsors, so I think we're well placed to give it a good crack on the road. You can see that other teams have travelled and have been successful on the road, so there's no reason why we can't be successful on the road as well.”
Adelaide City’s clash with Broadmeadow Magic kicks off on Friday 30th of October at 7 PM Adelaide time and can be watched live and free on SBS On Demand.
