The NPL VIC season is starting to feel like Roland Ballah’s breakout

Some players look comfortable at NPL level. Melbourne City phenomenon Roland Ballah looks like he wants to take it over.

Still only 18, the teenage winger is rapidly becoming one of the stories of the NPL Victoria season after another match-winning display for red-hot City over the weekend.

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Ballah - who previously lived in Perth, struck twice against struggling Dandenong Thunder to continue his stellar form, taking his tally to nine goals in 14 appearances this campaign, despite only making 11 starts, as City surged into the top four.

Five of those goals have come across his past four games as the City product continues to catch fire in recent weeks.

Now sitting just one goal behind the Golden Boot lead - only adrift of A-League great and retired Socceroo Bruno Fornaroli of Avondale FC and Hume City star Adisu Bayew, Ballah’s rise has become impossible to ignore.

But Ballah’s 2026 numbers only tell part of the story.

It is the way he plays that continues to turn heads across Victorian football.

Direct in 1v1 situations, explosive when isolated wide and fearless in possession, Ballah carries the type of attacking confidence that instantly changes the rhythm of games.

Every time he receives the ball in space, there is a feeling something chaotic could happen. Just look at the weekend.

Last season, Ballah played an important role in City’s historic promotion into Victoria’s top tier, scoring four goals during the club’s successful campaign as they reached NPL VIC for the first time.

Now, with City competing in NPL Victoria and Ballah continuing to explode offensively, the talented teenager is beginning to emerge as one of the competition’s most exciting young players.

Maybe this is the season Roland Ballah stops being a prospect and becomes a problem. An A-League bow could be on the horizon, too.