Central Coast wrapped up second spot and an A-League Men Semi Final with an emphatic 4-1 win over Adelaide United at Coopers Stadium on Friday night.
The Mariners leapfrogged the Reds with Friday night’s victory, condemning the Reds to a third-place finish.
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Mariners coach Nick Montgomery was thrilled with the win and dominant display.
“(I’m) delighted with the result, obviously the last league game of the season and to come to Coopers Stadium is never easy,” he said.
“I think the boys applied themselves really well tonight and I’m really happy with the performance.”
The Mariners not only ensured a top-two finish on Friday night, but a spot in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup.
“It’s been a long time since this club got anywhere near Asian football,” Montgomery told Paramount+. “A massive achievement for the club – (but) that’s the furthest away from my mind possible, now. We’ll be looking at preparing for a Semi Final.
“We know we’re good at home, and can go away from home and win. It’s a bit of a lottery in the finals, but we’ll go in with good momentum. I think we’ve been the form team of the comp the last couple of weeks, so that’s a real positive to take. “
In driving rain, Central Coast looked the most likely from the outset, pressing high at every opportunity, rarely allowing the home side any time in possession.
And on 23 minutes they were rewarded, breaking the deadlock with a lightening transition from a Reds corner.
Jason Cummings received possession from Sam Silvera on the right flank and squared a long range pass across the pitch to Marco Tulio, who took the ball in his stride and chipped the onrushing Joe Gauci.
Cummings had two chances in quick succession which were both saved by Gauci before Central Coast added a second in the 41st.
Beni NKololo was played through by Storm Roux from the right wing and took a touch before superbly lashing his left-footed strike into the bottom corner of the net from the edge of the area.
The Mariners survived an early second-half storm from the Reds which included a goal ruled out for offside by a matter of centimetres.
On 57 minutes the visitors added a third when Tulio grabbed his second with a stunning strike from the top of the box.
Silvera expertly held up play before teeing up his teammate, who picked out the top corner with a delightful curling effort.
Substitute Harrison Steele capped the win with a fourth in the 86th after fellow substitute Moresche danced through the Reds defence and supplied a cut back which Steele rifled into the net with the aid of a deflection.
United grabbed a consolation goal on the stroke of fulltime, Ryan Kitto lashing home from close range after the Mariners failed to clear a free kick.
Reds coach Carl Veart is eager for his side to quickly turn its attention to the elimination final.
“I’m disappointed with the result tonight but we have to look at the positives,” he said.
“We still finished third; we need to keep our belief and go into the final with some positive energy and get a good result.”
