The 2025 Hahn Australia Cup final rounds play-offs return to Darwin this week as the bottom four sides from the 2024-25 Isuzu UTE A-League season compete for the remaining two spots in the Round of 32.
While the Isuzu UTE A-League prepares for the first leg of two Semi-Final ties this weekend, Perth Glory, Brisbane Roar, Wellington Phoenix and Central Coast Mariners travel to Darwin for the two knockout clashes set to take place on Tuesday, May 13 and Wednesday, May 14 at Darwin Football Stadium.
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Perth Glory finished last on the Isuzu UTE A-League table and will take on 10th-place Central Coast Mariners in the first of two play-offs on Tuesday night. Then, attention will turn to a battle between Wellington Phoenix and Brisbane Roar the following evening to confirm the final two entrants into the 2025 Australia Cup Round of 32.
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For the Isuzu UTE A-League’s wooden spooners Perth, Tuesday’s clash with the Mariners comes at a good time with David Zdrilic’s side feeling confident after two wins from their last three games to end a disappointing league season on a high note.
“We’ve won two of the last three, that’s the first time we’ve been able to say that this season, so we’re taking that into this last game and we want to win it,” Zdrilic said.
“We’re now playing the way we wanted to play weeks ago and we’re getting the results now, which is obviously important.
“Hopefully, in this last game of the season, we can play the same way we have in the last three games.
“Going into this game, we’ve got confidence now that we haven’t had throughout the whole season.”
But the Mariners have had the edge over Perth this season, winning twice and drawing once in their three league clashes in 2024-25.
Zdrilic says the Mariners’ tactical flexibility across their three league meetings makes preparing for Tuesday’s play-off bout a difficult proposition.
“They [the Mariners] have played a couple of different ways,” Zdrilic added.
“The way they played against us here at home was different to the way they played when we went over there, so we’ll see how that works out.
“At home I thought we were very dominant and created a lot of chances and we feel we should have won that game.
“Even away from home, I thought we were very good and still ended up losing that game. So we’re confident that we can match the Mariners.”
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Brisbane Roar, meanwhile, head to Darwin for what will be new head coach Michael Valkanis’ first game in charge of the club.
Valkanis took over from Ruben Zadkovich as Brisbane’s head coach at the conclusion of the 2024-25 Isuzu UTE A-League regular season; Zadkovich had overseen a late purple patch from the Roar before his departure; his side went unbeaten through their last four games, picking up three wins and one draw – including a 1-0 win over Wellington, their play-off opponents, in late April.
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Speaking ahead of his first game at the helm, Valkanis expressed the importance of carrying that form into the Australia Cup play-offs to set his side up for a run through the knockout rounds in the lead-up to the 2025-26 Isuzu UTE A-League season.
“It’s an important game and it’s part of next season,” Valkanis said.
“I think that the team is in a good way, the last four games I think they’ve had good form and yeah there are some things I’d like to address and fix because of the way I see things and the way I’d like to do things.
“But you’ve also got to be careful in how much you can’t, you’re not going to come in and change the world this week, you’ve got to be very clever in terms of moving with the way the teams got that little bit of momentum and belief and they were gaining results in the last four games.
“At the same time just give three or four points that I think can improve them and then hopefully win which is very important in terms of how we set up our preseason and then start the rebuild.
“It’s a super important game and I’m excited that today we get to see the players on the pitch and we can have a good chat to them and start training and start putting some things in place that I think will help for the next game.”
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Wellington will take on Brisbane on Wednesday night in what is set to be the final game at the club for both Sam Sutton and Scott Wootton.
The club confirmed the imminent departure of both defenders on Monday ahead of the play-off clash with the Roar.
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Match details – Australia Cup play-offs
Central Coast Mariners v Perth Glory
Date: Tuesday, 13 May 2025
Kick-off: 7.00pm local/7.30pm AEST
Venue: Darwin Football Stadium
Tickets: Via Ticketebo
Wellington Phoenix v Brisbane Roar
Date: Wednesday, 14 May 2025
Kick-off: 7.00pm local/7.30pm AEST
Venue: Darwin Football Stadium
Tickets: Via Ticketebo
How to watch?
Both Australia Cup playoffs will be broadcast live and free on 10 Play, as well as Football Australia’s YouTube channel.
CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR TICKETS TO THE ISUZU UTE A-LEAGUE FINALS
