By the Palm Trees – Central Coast Mariners vs Sydney FC
Another week, another failed prediction from me. In my defence, we started the game against Wellington looking quite decent and at the end of the first half my prediction was looking very good indeed. Unfortunately for Mariners fans, and as has been the way recently, the team only put together a performance for one half, and the second half saw Wellington put us to the sword with a mixture of good performance, cracking finishing, and poor play from our own.
With Tuesday’s trip to Korea to play FC Seoul, last year’s AFC Champions League losing finalists, hot on the heels of the Wellington match there was little time to contemplate or dissect last Friday’s game and little time to react to it either. After a ten hours plus trip to Seoul where temperatures were in the centigrade negative our team’s work was cut out for them from the beginning. While the hosts made dangerous opportunities early, once the match settled down, without much possession, our side at least limited the number of easy chances for their high quality opposition. When the referee awarded FC Seoul a controversial penalty after Josh Rose contacted their classy striker Sergio Escudero in the box, it looked like so many other away ACL trips where the referee would over-play his hand in the result. The Mariners however were able to fashion a couple of opportunities for themselves and after the half time break should have levelled the scores when Rosey was unable to convert from an excellent run and cross by Bernie Ibini, putting his effort well over the bar. It wasn’t long after that FC Seoul put together some quality interplay which culminated in a classy finish making it two nil. From there it looked unlikely the Mariner’s would leave the Korean Republic with any sort of result and when Marcel Seip received a controversial red card late in the game, we were done.
Everyone has an opinion about why the Champions have recently been a shadow of their former selves so I might as well use this column to express some of mine. The most obvious problem is the process of adapting to the changes which have occurred at the club. In terms of the team, the changes are too numerous to detail but as an example, only three of the starting side which won last season’s showpiece were part of the side taking on FC Seoul. At the same time, we have lost arguably the best Head Coach and Sport Scientist seen in recent A-League seasons and to top it off, turned over the management structure of the club as we settle into new ownership. All of this has occurred over the past twelve months and several of the most important playing staff changes, in the last couple.
A word on fanism – when I bought my Mariners membership I wasn’t even sure who we were, what we would be about or whether we would be a success or a failure. Those matters were important, but the most important thing to me was supporting and being a part of the first and only professional sporting team to represent the Central Coast in a national competition. If I knew then the success that we have already had I would have been more than thrilled. I’ve been spoiled with it, and like lots of other fans I find it frustrating when our team is apparently not achieving that same level. Five losses in as many matches hurts, and while we’re all entitled to be frustrated and to express that in our own ways, at the end of the day I’m a Mariner’s fan for life, and life without the Mariners here, proudly representing our community, highly successful or not, is the thing that would hurt the most.
This weekend I’m hopeful that at the third attempt Coastie’s will finally get a chance to see the great man Alessandro Del Piero make his first appearance at Central Coast Stadium. While we will hate to see his uncanny ability to draw the foul in extreme circumstances, his presence will no doubt help with the crowd and give the opportunity those who have not travelled to Sydney away games have craved – to see one of the greatest ply his trade in our back yard.
We have a great record over Sydney so far this season and if we can put together two halves of good football I think we can begin to turn our form around. I will refrain from listing the individuals who can be the instruments of our turnaround because we need to be about the team. As I’ve said before, we always have been and hopefully always will be. I believe we still have players capable of it, coaching staff capable of it, management capable of it, and I know we have a fan base capable of lifting them all to achieve it.
So Central Coasties, get in to Central Coast Stadium on Saturday night and let our boys know you’re behind them whatever the circumstances and show them we’re proud to wear yellow!
Mariners to restore pride with a narrow but confidence inspiring home win.
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