MARINERS DEFEATED IN SYDNEY BUT OLIVER LAVALE’S LATE PENALTY SHOWS THE FIGHT NEVER STOPPED

It was a tough night in Sydney for the Mariners, who saw more of the ball and had more attempts than the hosts. John Hutchinson’s side kept pushing right to the final whistle and were rewarded with a goal at the death, a sign of the character in the group.

First half

It was a tricky start at Allianz Stadium for the Mariners, with Chris Donnell shown a yellow card for a foul inside the opening minute. Sydney then hit the bar through Rhyan Grant in the 3rd minute following a fast break, an early warning for Mariners.

The Mariners settled and started to get on the ball. Oliver Lavale’s shot from the centre of the box was saved by Harrison Devenish-Meares in the 10th minute, and after Donnell headed wide, Arthur De Lima’s effort from the right side of the box was also kept out in the 12th.

Central Coast kept coming. Donnell sent a right-footed shot high and wide from De Lima’s pass in the 13th minute, and Bailey Brandtman fired wide from outside the box in the 22nd after Lavale’s lay-off, with the Mariners seeing plenty of the ball and asking questions.

After Noah McCann was penalised in the area in the 31st minute, Al Hassan Touré converted the penalty down the centre of the goal to make it 1-0, and Andrew Redmayne then had to deny Rhys Youlley’s shot from outside the box.

Sydney struck again in the 42nd minute, Touré finishing from very close range into the bottom right corner from Akol Akon’s pass following a fast break. The Mariners kept pushing before the break – Brandtman had a shot blocked and Donnell sent an attempt from very close range over the bar from Brandtman’s cross after a corner – but the visitors went in 2-0 down despite a competitive half.

Second half

Sydney struck within five minutes of the restart. Touré completed his hat-trick in the 50th minute, finishing from the centre of the box into the bottom left corner after Oriola Sunday’s through ball following a fast break, and the Mariners found themselves 3-0 down.

Head coach John Hutchinson responded with fresh legs around the hour, sending on John-Kymani Gordon for Arthur De Lima and Presley Ortiz for Bailey Brandtman. The Mariners kept coming – Ali Auglah went close from very close range in the 62nd minute from Lavale’s pass, only for Harrison Devenish-Meares to save.

Ortiz twice headed wide from Lucas Mauragis crosses in the 70th and 71st minutes, and Sydney substitute Joe Lacey was booked for a foul in the 76th. Isaac Kwon and Jesse Mantell came on in the 77th, and Kwon quickly tested the keeper with a header from Chris Donnell’s pass.

The hosts added a fourth in the 85th minute. Gabriel Popović, fresh off the bench, fired a left-footed shot from outside the box into the bottom left corner, set up by Tiago Quintal, moments after Mauragis had sent an effort high and wide from distance.

There was still a reward for the Mariners’ effort. Alexander Bolton replaced Donnell in the 89th minute, and when the visitors won a penalty for Ben Garuccio’s foul, Oliver Lavale stepped up in the first minute of stoppage time and sent a right-footed shot into the bottom left corner to make it 4-1.

Full time

There was no hiding from the scoreline at Allianz Stadium, where the Mariners went down 4-1 to a Sydney side that took its chances. The numbers, though, tell of a Central Coast team that was far from second best on the ball: the Mariners held 52.6% of possession, completed 327 of 425 passes to the hosts’ 297 of 395, outshot Sydney 15 to 11 and won seven corners to four. The difference was in the finishing, with Sydney scoring four from six shots on target while the Mariners put five on target and found the net once.

Oliver Lavale’s stoppage-time penalty, his third goal of the season and more than any other Mariner, was the reward for a group that kept going to the final whistle. The head-to-head record – 31 wins to Sydney, 17 to the Mariners and 12 draws before this match – shows how tough an assignment this fixture has always been, and John Hutchinson’s group will regroup together, tighten up in both boxes and go again back home in Gosford.

Match details

Next match

The Mariners return to polytec Stadium in Gosford to host Perth Glory on Saturday 21 November, with kick-off at 5:00pm, chasing a first win of the season. Tickets are available via Ticketek.