Central Coast Mariners’ Bradley Tapp gave his thoughts ahead of our Isuzu UTE A-League Round One Clash with Melbourne Victory.
Melbourne Victory:
“Everyone is pumped up for Round One, Grand Final rematch. Our matches in Asia have helped us gel and we’re really excited.”
“We like to focus on our principles, we do our homework but we focus on what we can do and how we are going to take control of the game.
“We know it’s going to be a fiery game but we’re ready for the challenge and ready to show that we can be just as good as we were last year.”
Leadership, opportunity and winning mentality:
“Obviously Trent’s injury is unfortunate but he’s still amongst us, he is a great leader and his recovery is going well.” Tapp said.
“What it provides is opportunity for young players, we all have to step up. I learned a lot last season and I hope I can take that into this season and lead by example.”
“We’ve had a taste of what it’s like to win last year, everyone now has a winning mentality and we want to win everything we can, it makes us more hungry.” Tapp explained.
“We’re competing at the top of Asia and we want to go back-to-back-to-back in the A-Leagues, that would be really special.”
AFC Champions League Elite:
Tapp dismissed the idea that defeats in our opening two Champions League games could have damaged any confidence in the group:
“We knew the first couple of games would be tough, when we’re just coming into the competition and the teams in Asia have been playing their season already, but with each game we’re getting more confident and gelling so we’re looking forward to the next step,” he said.
A message to the fans:
“Last year, especially in the Grand Final, you were our 12th man. If we can that support and get everyone to Our Paradise for Round One that would be great.”
