Central Coast striker Nik Mrdja knows his chances of playing in the Hyundai A-League beyond this season are well and truly on the line.
Mrdja, 30, is off contract with the Mariners at the end of the season and the injury-riddled front man needs some big performances to convince Mariners coach Lawrie McKinna he is worth keeping for another year.
His statistics this season do not make great reading. He still hasn’t found the back of the net and has squandered several chances, including an embarrassing miss against Sydney early this month.
But Mrdja is likely to be included in the Mariners squad for Saturday night’s match against Adelaide at Canberra Stadium.
He got some much-needed confidence when he netted a hat-trick for the Mariners in the National Youth League against Newcastle last week and he believes a goal in the Hyundai A-League is not far away.
The former Perth striker is likely to come off the bench as the fifth-placed Mariners battle sixth-placed Adelaide.
“Eventually I’ll come good,” Mrdja said.
“I’d like to keep playing in the A-League and I would like to stay on the coast.”
“I haven’t had a great record with injuries, that-s what has stopped me. But I feel I’ve got on top of that now.”
McKinna has shown great faith in Mrdja while he has been out for long periods with injury and still believes he has the potential to be a consistent scorer.
“We need goals and he got a hat-trick last week,” McKinna said.
“He is fit and scoring, we need to give him a chance.”
