FPF's 2025 NPL SA Finals Series preview

In the lead-up to the 2025 NPL SA Finals Series, Front Page Football breaks down the narratives that will shape this post-season.

MetroStars and Campbelltown City taking the stage in last year's NPL SA Grand Final. (Image: Pagonis Photography)

The biggest compliment you can give Danny Graystone is that since he stepped foot at MetroStars three years ago, you cannot talk about finals football without mentioning his side first. For the third consecutive season, T.K. Shutter Reserve is the home of the NPL SA premiers. But the club's trophy cabinet is still anticipating its first NPL Championship since 2012.

MetroStars are doing all the right things, but the pressure remains to convert this consistent regular-season dominance into a championship. Graystone's side cruised to the premiership, claiming it by a comfortable 13 points, only losing two matches and boasting the competition's best attack, led by league top scorer Owen Windsor, and defence, featuring the likes of Noah McNamara, Lachlan Barr, and Christian D'Angelo, by a wide margin.

While the statistics are impressive, year after year, we are reminded that finals football is a different ball game. While the MetroStars are well-positioned to break their championship drought, thanks to impressive recruiting that has made them deeper than ever, the pressure is on to claim the trophy that their league position suggests they are the favourites to win.

MetroStars cruised to a third consecutive Premiership in 2025. (Image: Pagonis Photography)

Behind MetroStars lurk a dangerous Adelaide City, who are hitting their straps at the right time. In their last month of football, City won all four games, scoring an astonishing 17 goals, while only conceding twice as they beat a competitive pack for the invaluable second spot on the table.

Vas Parhas has been able to get a tune out of Adelaide City in his first year in charge of the club, and his side seems like the most likely candidate to usurp MetroStars. It would not be the first time City has played spoilsports for a dominant regular season side in recent times, defeating premiers Adelaide Comets in the 2021 Grand Final.

City has players all around the pitch that can cause damage, and with the likes of Bruce Kamau heating up and the addition of Noah Smith, who has hit the ground running, do not let the ladder fool you; another championship is well within the realm of possibility.

Noah Smith and Bruce Kamau celebrate a goal against Adelaide United. (Image: Pagonis Photography)

Behind Adelaide City, Croydon FC and FK Beograd finished one and two points respectively away from the coveted second spot on the ladder. While both teams, who occupied the spot behind MetroStars at different points of the season, would be disappointed to miss the advantages that come with second, they are both overjoyed to be returning to the Finals Series.

Firstly, Croydon returns to the Finals Series after a two-year absence, with George Tsonis having a phenomenal first season in charge of Polonia, including overseeing a nine-game unbeaten run.

It will be the first time Croydon play a final at their new home at Regency Park. With key defensive players like Daniel Margush and Bol Mapor setting the standard for their positions in the competition, Polonia will be tough to break down for any opponent.

As importantly, Croydon have had its fair share of contributors in the front third, scoring 43 goals in 22 games, the equal second most behind MetroStars. Their equal top scorers are Pasia John and Luca Trimboli, with nine goals each, making them an unpredictable side to prepare against.

---

READ MORE ON FPF

AUSSIES ABROAD: FPF's Aussies Abroad power rankings: Week 1

FRANK PIMBLETT: From schoolboy prodigy to Brisbane City star, and kickabouts with Rod Stewart: The Frank Pimblett story

NPL NSW: "If you're not trying to progress, you're going backwards" - How NWS Spirit have surprised everyone in the NPL NSW

---

FK Beograd have also ended a heartbreaking three-year run of missing out on the top six on the final day since getting promoted, and have sealed their return to the NPL post-season for the first time in 21 years. Just like Croydon, Adrian D'Aloia's side has contributors around the pitch and a balance of a steely defence and impressive attack that make them a challenging opponent.

Returning to the NPL in 2025, Cooper Nunn picked up where he left off as one of the competition's leading defenders, with the Beograd backline boasting the third-best defence of the competition. On the attacking front, Antoni Trimboli has had a season to remember, ending second in the Golden Boot race with 13 goals, with Jason Konstandopoulos and import Lorenzo Boselli also central to much of their team's attack, which finished the regular season with 43 goals after a smashing five-goal win away at Campbelltown City.

It has been a season to celebrate for FK Beograd, who return to the NPL SA Finals Series for the first time in 21 years. (Image: Pagonis Photography)

Below them is Adelaide United, who Beograd will host at Frank Mitchell Park in the first week of the Finals Series. The mercurial nature of the Young Reds has been well-documented, but their form entering the post-season is anything but promising.

Elvis Markov's side enters its Elimination Final having lost its last two games by an alarming combined margin of nine goals, while being unable to find the back of the net. With the likes of Amlani Tatu and Harry Crawford taking the pitch, it is hard to dismiss the Young Reds completely. But a tough record away from home in 2025, and particularly at Frank Mitchell Park, means they'll have to be at their best to advance.

Adelaide United and West Torrens Birkalla round off the 2025 NPL SA Finals Series. (Image: Pagonis Photography)

West Torrens Birkalla defeated the pack chasing for the final spot in the top six. If it is possible to be an experienced rookie, that is precisely what this side would be. Led by coach Stav Gelekis in his first season as NPL head coach, the recently promoted Birkalla enter the Finals Series with a roster filled with experience that can do some damage.

With experienced campaigners like Nicholas Harpas, Charlie Devereux, Ryan Yates, Adam Le Cornu, Allan Welsh, and Nathan Andijanto at their disposal, Birks have the big game experience in the NPL to defeat any side on their day. They will take on Croydon FC in the first week of the Finals Series, a matchup that ironically last took place in the last round of the regular season and ended in Polonia's favour after Adam Martinello scored the game's only goal.

Enjoy coverage of local football in Australia? Click here and read more of Front Page Football's NPL coverage across the country!