The White Eagles have started their campaign in exceptional circumstances with two wins and a draw sitting Brian Brown's men in equal first spot after three weekends.

Brown's new signings have settled in well at the club, and have shown a strong sense of belief to-date, signaling a tough challenge ahead for his former club the Sutherland Sharks on Saturday.

The Sharks, who lost their first two matches of the season in close encounters against Sydney Olympic and West Sydney Berries, will draw on the confidence gained from the 2-0 defeat of South Coast Wolves last weekend. Robbie Stanton will again look at his experienced heads to lead a relatively young group into battle, with all eyes on Scottish import Stephen McConologue who made his debut against the Wolves - and very nearly scored with one of his first touches after entering the fray 15' minutes from the end as a substitute.

The match also pits together last season's Gold Medal winner Bradley Boardman, now with the White Eagles, against the club with whom he clinched the Premiership in 2009.

Over at Marconi Stadium, two perennial rivals stemming back to the NSL meet as the Stallions play host to A.P.I.A.-Leichhardt Tigers. The two sides find themselves in totally different situations as the Stallions sit in equal first spot on the ladder with seven-points from three matches, meanwhile the Tigers languish in bottom spot with zero-points to show from their three outings.

The Stallions have faced a rather disrupted pre-season with their new African signings still to gain clearance to play in the league. Coach Lee Sterrey hopes to have the players at his disposal, as early as this weekend, though will be faced with a further dilemma following the fine performances of the young boys who have stepped up and performed admirably in the opening matches.

The Tigers on the other hand will need to go for broke following three consecutive losses thus far. Once more, the weight of expectation will fall onto the shoulders of the side's experienced trio in the attacking third - Nick Rizzo, Franco Parisi and Robbie Younis. The three players have struggled to create the goals in the opening matches this season, though there is no bigger match in the fixture calendar than a clash against Marconi, and hence no better chance than this to get their season back on track.

On Sunday afternoon, the newly promoted Rockdale City Suns host Manly United FC in their second home fixture at Bicentenial Park South, with kick-off set for 5:00 pm. The Suns have turned many heads with their four-points from the opening three rounds, and really caught the attentions of the general on-lookers with a fine performance against Blacktown City FC last weekend; a match where the Suns perhaps should have left Lily Homes Stadium with maximum points.

Mile Todoroski has instilled a strong mentality amongst his players, and none more so than Marino Musumeci has taken his chance with both hands. The former Sydney Olympic player has scored twice in the last two matches, and is riding a wave of good form in this early part of the season. Along with the hard working Sam Awad upfront, the Suns have proven a real handful thus far, and will no doubt cause Phil Moss' Manly United FC headaches on Sunday.

The Cromer Park side will be riding high on confidence following their impressive 3-0 away defeat of A.P.I.A.-Leichhardt Tigers. The likes of Bradley Groves, Keith Shevlin and Andrew Mailer were instrumental in the recent win, and with Robbie Cattanach making his return to the first side last weekend, the signs are positive for a Manly United FC challenge this season.

Sydney Olympic returns to Belmore for their home clash with Blacktown City FC on Sunday afternoon. The encounter sees Blacktown coach Aytek Genc return to the club with whom he had a brief stint as coach in early 2009 before the coach and club parted ways. The Blues will be on a high following the hard-fought 2-2 draw away at Bankstown City in Round 3, meanwhile Blacktown City will need to pick up the pace a little following their inconsistent showing against the Suns at home.

Both sides possess a strong array of talent in the final third, though the injury to Matthew Mayora has certainly hurt Sydney Olympic. No such trouble for Blacktown City and Tolgay Ozbey; the attacker is in great touch already this season, and will be a definite contender for the top goalscorer prize at the season's end.

At the Sydney Olympic Athletic Centre, Bankstown City will be search of their first win of the season when they visit the West Sydney Berries. Peter Tsekenis' side has been unable to close out matches against Manly United FC and Sydney Olympic - both at home, with the Lions leading in both matches - meanwhile the only away match to-date was a loss at Rockdale City Suns. Tsekenis and skipper Richard Luksic will need to steady the ship in the defensive third, meanwhile the front men Hussein Salameh and Robbie Mileski out of midfield will need to continue finding the back of the net.

John Calleja's Berries were somewhat lucky to return from Edensor Park last weekend with a point following a dominant performance by Sydney United. Sash Tirovski and Kosta Lagoudakis showed great leadership despite the Reds onslaught, meanwhile goalkeeper Hamish McLean was in exceptional touch, constantly thwarting the Reds best efforts. Returning to their home venue, with their home fans expected in abundance, the Berries will be out to make it two-from-two at home and keep the pressure on the undefeated sides above them.

In the final match of the round, Sydney United will be expected to run riot over South Coast Wolves at Sydney United Sports Centre. David Zdrilic's men will be smarting over the 1-1 draw against the Berries last weekend, despite outplaying the West Sydney for large spells over the 90' minutes.

Their opponents have already proven to be more than capable of mixing it with the big guns in the competition, though have obviously lacked the experience over 90' minutes to-date. Coach Trevor Morgan will make no changes to the formation he has implemented thus far, and will be calling upon his more experienced heads in the likes of Lisandro Berbis and goalkeeper Brody Crane to lead the pack. Midfielder Jason Trifiro too holds an important role in the centre of midfield, and a big performance will be expected from him if the Wolves are to test Sydney United this weekend.

-By Joseph Carlucci