Newcastle Olympic lose Musa Kamara ahead of crunch NPL and Australia Cup games

Kamara signed with Spanish lower-league club CP Villarrobledo and left on Friday, after requests to have his departure delayed until after the cup game were denied. Olympic, though, expect to have midfielder Joey Langlois back for the cup after his trial with English Championship club Blackpool.

Coach Joel Griffiths said Kamara was a loss but the club were thrilled to play a part in him moving on to bigger opportunities.

"He's been good, he's a player who fits into how I want to play as well," Griffiths said. "But it's good for the club as well that we can get players moving on to better leagues.

"Joey has done the same thing, he's trialling over at a very big club in Blackpool, so I think it's very important for the football club that we are helping these kids. I think he'll be back for the cup game and hopefully he can stay for the rest of the year."

While the cup game looms as the club's biggest moment, Saturday's NPL match at Lisle Carr Oval is also crucial. Olympic have climbed to fifth spot on 24 points with back-to-back wins but have five teams within two points in the race for the top five.

Griffiths indicated captain Rhys Cooper (hamstring), who was out last week, was unlikely to be risked against Azzurri and others would be kept fresh for Tuesday night.

"We'll probably rest a few tomorrow, going into a Tuesday game with a short turnaround, but I'm pretty confident with the squad we've got to be able to put a good performance on," he said. "The way the boys have handled themselves, whether they are playing or not, I think it shows the depth we've got."

Charlestown (33 points) drew 1-1 with second-placed Maitland (30) on Wednesday night to stay on top. Riley Smith (suspension) returns but Matt Tull (injury) is in doubt.

Azzurri coach Graham Law said Olympic were another test in his side's tough run towards the premiership, which also includes games against Lambton Jaffas, Broadmeadow and Valentine.

"Every game now is important for us, because we don't play any of the lower teams," Law said.

Also on the weekend's round of catch-up games, Cooks Hill (12) host Valentine (19) on Saturday at Fearnley Dawes Athletics Field.

On Sunday, Weston (23) welcome Edgeworth (22), Jaffas (26) travel to Lake Macquarie (7) and Broadmeadow (26) are on the road to winless Adamstown (2).

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