It’s Grand Final week in the Isuzu UTE A-League and ahead of the blockbuster clash between Central Coast Mariners and Melbourne Victory, aleagues.com.au reporter James Dodd sat down with Mariners favourite, Jacob Farrell...
It’s four days out from arguably the biggest match in the Central Coast Mariners’ history yet the mood is a relaxed one at the club’s Centre of Excellence on a sunny day in Tuggerah. However for one local product, the reality is beginning to hit home.
I keep asking myself, ‘when are we going to slip up?’
It’s a question that many have asked of the Central Coast Mariners this season, but the fact it’s being asked by one of their own players tells you just how incredible – and improbable – this current adventure has been.
The player asking that question is 21-year-old Jacob Farrell; few players have a connection to their local club quite like the Mariners defender.
Born and raised in Gosford, if Farrell isn’t charging up and down the left flank in front of an adoring crowd at Industree Group Stadium then he can often be found fishing in the local area in his downtime. However his journey from local academy product to fan favourite hasn’t been a straight forward one.
After joining the club aged 11, Farrell actually walked away from the Mariners aged 18 in search of something else. What that ‘something’ was, he wasn’t sure. However things just didn’t feel right at the time.
“I think that was after we won the NPL 2 Grand Final,” said Farrell, sitting down with aleagues.com.au at the club’s training base.
“I (had) just turned 18 and, I don’t know, I just wasn’t really enjoying it as much anymore.
“I wasn’t really forced out, it was partly my decision. I’d just left school at that time and I wanted to go try something new. So I went up to (play) NPL in Newcastle with Valentine, I played there for four games and they were great to me.
“I made a good good friend there, Adam Hughes, who is the coach and he helped me a lot. But yeah, it kind of gave me a bit of a wake up. I missed the Mariners when I left so when I came back I was excited to be back.”
While he may have been enjoying his football during that brief stint with Valentine it certainly wasn’t going to be paying the bills as far as Farrell was concerned, so his pursuit of happiness led him to take up another line of work, albeit briefly, and that wasn’t exactly what he had in mind either.
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“I was a tradie for a little bit with my dad and I didn’t really enjoy that,” laughed Farrell.
“It was plastering and I didn’t enjoy it all. It was very hard work and the fulfilment levels weren’t the same! But I think I just needed to experience that, what I did.
“I don’t think I realised what I had until I didn’t have it anymore.
He added: “So when I left the club, I realised that I wanted to become a professional… it is just the best job.”
So often in football it’s very hard to go back through the door, especially if you’re the one who has closed it.
However in Farrell’s case that option presented itself due to the perseverance of a club legend, someone who not only recognised the qualities of Farrell the player but also Farrell the person.
That person was Championship-winning coach Nick Montgomery.
“When I left the club, after four games (with Valentine) he got in contact with me again and said come back, which is a bit unusual,” Farrell explained.
“Once you leave a club you don’t expect them to invite you back. He gave me a second chance and I was grateful for that and he gave me my start in the league. I think without him I wouldn’t be playing professionally.”
That faith was repaid instantly as Farrell not only started Nick Montgomery’s first game in charge of the Mariners but he also scored the winner; a diving header to clinch a 2-1 win at the home of their fiercest rivals, Newcastle Jets.
Fast forward two years and a now 21-year-old Farrell has gone on to become an integral part of a Central Coast Mariners side that is seemingly re-writing the history books week after week.
Clinching an improbable Isuzu UTE A-League Championship under Montgomery in the 2022-23 season, the Mariners have gone to new heights under English coach Mark Jackson.
Following on from last season’s title, Jackson’s new-look Mariners have recovered from a rocky start to go on and clinch both the Premier’s Plate – where Farrell scored the winning goal against Adelaide – and the prestigious AFC Cup this campaign and are now just one game away from winning a unique domestic/continental treble – an achievement never before accomplished by an Australian side.
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“I think as I was growing up as a kid, we didn’t really have this. Like, we weren’t winning the league, we were finishing lower in the league. So to be a part of it is amazing,” Farrell said.
Farrell’s starring role last season – despite battling glandular fever at a crucial stage of the campaign – came ten years after the club last won an A-League Grand Final, a game which Farrell actually attended as a fan with his Dad, complete with face paint, a Mariners jersey and a soft spot for his favourite player Josh Rose.
“I keep asking myself, when are we going to you know, slip up or something’s gonna happen, but it just hasn’t yet. We just keep going and we just keep performing and it’s an amazing feeling.”
Having already cemented himself as a first team regular with the Mariners, Farrell has now gone on to become a household name in the Isuzu UTE A-League, arguably establishing himself as the competition’s leading left back – not an easy feat given the calibre of some of the players Farrell is up against.
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In fact, his individual battles with Bayern Munich-bound winger Nestory Irankunda have been box office viewing over the last 18 months and it’s a duel the Mariners man believes has helped get the best out of him.
“I guess when it first started it wasn’t planned,” laughed Farrell when asked about Nick Montgomery’s tactical plan to deliberately sub Farrell on at the same as Irankunda during last season’s Semi-Finals clashes with Adelaide United.
“I just came on at the same time and happened to defend well. But I guess it adds a lot more and makes me perform better in a way. You know I’ve got a job to do and a task to do.
“My one job is to defend Nestor. Him being such a good player has lifted my game as well. So not only do I get to verse a great player but I thank him for being a great player and helping my game as well.”
With one more season left on Farrell’s three-year deal there’s a chance the Mariners fan favourite will be back in Gosford for another campaign.
However, already a regular with the Australian U23 side, the 21-year-old’s excellent performances will have no doubt caught the eye of scouts watching over in Europe and the player himself admits he’s keen to spread his wings and see how far he can go.
“Yeah definitely, I’ve got aspirations to do that, to play overseas,” said Farrell when discussing his future.
“I think as a kid who follows football, your dream is to play in Europe. So that’d be a goal of mine.
“But then again, I’m in no rush. I’m enjoying my football and I don’t want to go over there and then come back and make that a problem in my football (career).
“So yeah, whatever comes, you know, I’ll just take my time with it but is a goal of mine and hopefully in the future, I can make my way over there.”
You can catch Farrell and his Central Coast teammates in action this Saturday night as the Mariners face Melbourne Victory in the 2023-24 Isuzu UTE A-League Grand Final – live on all Network 10 platforms, Paramount+ and Sky Sport in New Zealand.
