FFA Cup holders Adelaide United begin their title defence when it travels to the Northern Territory on Wednesday night to face debutants Darwin Olympic at the Darwin Football Stadium.
Adelaide come into the clash as heavy favourites against a relatively unknown side making its first appearance in the national cup competition.
Of course, the Reds proved victorious in last year’s edition of the tournament by dispatching rivals Perth Glory 1-0 in front of a capacity Coopers Stadium crowd, courtesy of Sergio Cirio’s second-half strike.
Olympic is the inaugural team to represent the Northern Territory in the FFA Cup Round of the 32, following its successful qualification campaign.
Darwin are currently situated in second place on 31 points in the domestic NorZone Premier League standings, trailing front-runners Hellenic.
The Reds, meanwhile, will be hoping to build on its 5-0 preseason trouncing of local FFSA Premier League club Adelaide Blue Eagles as it attempts to secure the FFA Cup crown for a second consecutive campaign.
Braces from Marcelo Carrusca and Pablo Sanchez as well as a goal from Bruce Djite guided the A-League outfit to a convincing win in what was Guillermo Amor’s first match in charge, after the shock departure of coach Josep Gombau.
[interaction id=”55c007cba52231f607872202″]
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook.
