There are plenty of Australian World Cup hopefuls in action in the United Kingdom this weekend. First off, Richard Garcia is starting to get more of a run with Hull City in the English Premier League and he will be hoping for a start when they host fellow relegation battlers Burnley.
On Sunday, Blackburn Rovers are at home to the mighty Manchester United who will be trying desperately to regain top spot on the table as Chelsea compete in the FA Cup. Vince Grella's fitness is in doubt after receiving a knock for the Rovers reserves earlier this week whilst Brett Emerton should be up for selection.
In Liverpool, Mark Schwarzer will once again take the gloves for Fulham but will want to be on his game after the Reds fired four past Benfica in the Europa League last night with two to superstar Fernando Torres. The Cottagers, however, are enjoying some of their own good form as they joined Liverpool in the final four of the competition with a 1-0 win over Wolfsburg in Germany.
Nicky Carle will need to step up to help Crystal Palace overcome Queens Park Rangers at Selhurst Park. Carle has been a solid contributor for the Eagles in the past four or five weeks but needs to take his game to another level to cement his spot in the Socceroos squad. Palace also need a win to push them clear of the drop zone of the English Championship.
Adam Federici and Reading are away to Cardiff City and are looking to climb the table even further after some recent solid form. They are currently 12th on the table with Federici conceding just six goals in their past eight matches with the Royals taking 17 of a possible 24 points.
In Middlesbrough, midfielder Rhys Williams, goalkeeper Brad Jones and striker Scott McDonald will want to consolidate when the Teessiders take on Sheffield Wednesday as they strive for a place in the play-off zone. Boro are currently six points in arrears of Leicester City who sit in the bottom play-off position.
Dean Heffernan and Huddersfield Town are away to Brentford in League One and will be hoping to remain in the top six. Heffernan has been showing decent form for the Terriers and has received some praise from manager Lee Clark and if he can continue on in this form then he may very well find himself on the plane to South Africa.
