Central Coast Mariners right back Storm Roux is no stranger to an F3 Derby, having suited up for the Mariners in the fixture on 14 seperate occasions.
The 30-year-old is ready for what is going to be a massive match tomorrow, as the side push to secure second place on the Isuzu UTE A-League ladder.
“This club mean’s everything to me. I came when I was 20 years old and I am 30 now, pretty much all of my career has been spent at the Mariners. The club means a lot to me, and F3 Derby’s are the games that you get up for at this club,” he said.
“It is the biggest game on our calendar and it means even more now with second in reach. That is all the motivation that we need. We are happy to have secured finals, but we want to go for that top 2 spot. That is really important to us, and the game tomorrow is another step to getting us there.”
Roux and the entire team are certainly not taking the Newcastle Jets lightly, as they fight for their season tomorrow. Currently in seventh place with two rounds remaining, a loss on Saturday evening will severely dampen any hopes of a finals place for the Jets.
“They are a good team who are fighting for a top six spot. We know that they are going to come prepared and come ready for the game. We will be prepared for that,” Roux said.
Off the back of two strong wins and a draw against first placed Melbourne City, belief is running high within the walls of the Mariners Centre of Excellence. It is however not something that is new, rather a belief that has been there since the very beginning of the campaign.
“I think we have had belief all season. We have been one of the best teams in the league and that shows in our ladder position,” he said.
“That game against Melbourne City showed that we can go toe to toe with the premiers, anything can happen in the finals. We believe that we can go all the way.”
Giving young players a chance to flourish has been one of the many pillars of the Mariners so far this season, with Roux one of the experienced heads of the squad. The defender has taken on a leadership role this campaign, thriving under the added responsibility.
“All of our young guys have really bright futures. Mariners have a knack of unearthing good young talent and having them kick on to bigger and better things. It is really good seeing them perform week in and week out, hopefully in a couple of years they will be moving on [overseas],” he said.
“Our team is so young, being the second oldest here is pretty crazy at the age of 30. It is a responsibility that I pride myself with, I have never really seen myself as one of the senior boys but now I have to be. I am more than happy to help them out along the way and give them any tips or tricks.”
Roux is prepared to step out into what is expected to be a fierce contest tomorrow afternoon, ready to use his years of experience to help the side. The defender more than confident that his younger teammates will thrive under the pressure.
“I am going to lead by example, I have been to a lot of F3 Derby’s so I have a bit of experience in that. These young boys certainly are not inexperienced, they have played a lot of games for their age,” he said.
“They are more than capable of performing at the level that we need in big games. I believe that they will be ready to go.”
