Off the back of a historic treble winning 23/24 season, the Central Coast Mariners return for our first game of the 24/25 campaign, as we travel to Victoria to take on Heidelberg United in the Australia Cup Round of 32.
The Australia Cup is the final competition left to conquer for Mark Jackson after arriving in the country almost 11 months ago. He and his squad are ready for our first competitive match of the campaign having returned for pre-season in mid-July.
Wednesday night will see the Mariners take on NPL opposition in the Australia Cup for the first time since December 2021, when we defeated NPL NSW outfit APIA Leichhardt 6-0 in the Quarter-Finals.
In our way of a Round of 16 berth this year is NPL Victoria side Heidelberg United, in what will be the first ever competitive match between the two teams.
Heidelberg are taking on A-League opposition for the first time since Brisbane Roar knocked them out in 2022, winning 3-1 at Olympic Park at this stage of the competition.
However, the Australia Cup does hold fond memories for The Warriors. In 2015 they welcomed a record crowd of 11,372 to Olympic Park for a clash against Melbourne City and in 2017 they recorded a historic 1-0 win over Perth Glory.
🆚 More about our opponents
Heidelberg entered the 2024 Australia Cup in the Fourth Preliminary Round in Victoria back in March and have cruised to the Round of 32 stage, scoring 22 goals in their four games so far.
They have been strong in the league too but their nine draws have held them back from a title push. They sit fifth in NPL Victoria with two games remaining, despite losing fewer games (3) than anyone else in the division. Home form has been key for Heidelberg, they are unbeaten at Olympic Park in the league this season.
Heidelberg have several former A-League players in their current squad, including one former Mariner in Yaren Sozer. Yaren was a popular figure at the club, arriving in October 2021 and departing as an A-League Champion after the 2022/23 season.
This Round of 32 clash will be the first time Central Coast Mariners and Heidelberg United have ever met before in a competitive fixture, but there is some friendly history between the two clubs.
In the 23/24 season, Heidelberg helped out our A-League Women’s team, kindly allowing us to use their facilities to prepare for our Liberty A-League Elimination Final with Melbourne Victory, at short notice after our pre-arranged training venue became unavailable.
🆕 New faces in the Mariners Family
Mariners fans can expect to see a host of new faces on Wednesday evening, with all five new signings in contention to make their debuts for the club.
Brazilian forward Vitor Feijao and Northern Irish midfielder Alfie McCalmont have taken up our last two VISA places, and are both preparing for their first game on Australian shores.
Australian Youth representative goalkeeper Adam Pavlesic has joined from Sydney FC, while exciting full-back Lucas Mauragis traded Newcastle for the Coast in what was our first player signing announcement of the off-season.
20-year-old centre defender Diesel Herrington arrived from Danish club AGF, while Sasha Kuzevski was upgraded to a first team contract and Haine Eames was given a scholarship deal.
🗣 Jacko: “We are going out there to win.”
Jacko says the team want to continue the winning mindset from last season and touched on his memory of the Australia Cup as he approaches his first game in the competition as Head Coach.
“I remember watching the Australia Cup game last year before I came across, it was one of the first Mariners games I watched before I jumped on the plane.” Jacko said.
“We’re excited for the challenge, we know it’s going to be tough against a team who are coming towards the end of their season and have games under their belts, whereas we’re at the start of our pre-season.
“We’ll be in a position where we’re ready physically and we’ll utilise the squad but we are going out there to win and create that winning mentality within the group, continuing our mindset from last season.”
📺 How to watch
Watch the game live from 7:30pm on 10Play, or follow all the action with updates across Official Central Coast Mariners social channels.
That feeling when your Mariners are back in action tomorrow night for the first time in 𝟕𝟒 𝐃𝐚𝐲𝐬! 🥳
— Central Coast Mariners (@CCMariners) August 6, 2024
Tune in via 10Play at 7:30pm to watch us take on Heidelberg United in the @australiacup! 📺#CCMFC #RideTheWave🌊 pic.twitter.com/ztXmNit9nY
