Game 100 in Mariners colours for captain Oliver Bozanic is sure to bring sentimental memories to the forefront of the mind of one of the club’s finest contributors.
From his original stint in yellow and blue, a fine career on the European stage ensued for the seven-capped Socceroo.
He amassed 71 Mariners caps and won one premiership and championship with the club between 2010-13, before making his return in 2020. He’s since continued to enhance his legacy in Gosford, typifying the club’s proud approach to producing homegrown talent capable of representing the region on the international stage.
Bozanic was the instrumental figure in Central Coast’s 2-0 win over Sydney FC in Round 4 of the 2021/22 Isuzu UTE A-League campaign; his 99th appearance in Mariners colours.
His former teammate and current Paramount+ football analyst Daniel McBreen – with whom Bozanic sealed the club’s first and only Isuzu UTE A-League championship title to date – was glowing in his assessment of the central midfielder, whose presence in this current Mariners side brimming with young academy prospects will only continue to grow in significance as he reaches the 100-cap mark and beyond.
“I can’t overstate how important Ollie Bozanic is to this Mariners team,” McBreen said after Central Coast’s victory over Sydney FC last weekend. “Eight years ago when he (left) the Mariners the first time he was a quality player. He’s gone overseas, got experience in three or four different countries, came and (went) at Melbourne (Victory and City).
“He’s been around now, he’s an older head, and right from the moment he came back, when you’re at the ground you can hear his direction on the park, organising and constantly talking to the younger players around him – and there are a lot of young players around him – he really directs and leads, not only with his words but with his actions as well.
“He’s a massive part of this Nick Montgomery team.”
Bozanic made his Isuzu UTE A-League debut for the Mariners in August 2010 at 21 years of age.
The 1-0 win over then-Melbourne Heart was the first of 33 appearances the central midfielder would make in the 2010/11 season, progressing all the way to the Grand Final which the Mariners ultimately lost in remarkable circumstances, when Brisbane Roar came from two goals down to win a dramatic penalty shootout.
Further heartbreak would ensue the season following when Perth Glory eliminated Bozanic and the Mariners in a preliminary final bout once again decided via spot kicks. It was a bitter pill to swallow for the side which finished top of the table at the end of the regular season.
The club continued to hunt for success, and the following campaign saw Bozanic and the Mariners finally break the club’s championship drought. His final game of his first Mariners spell came in the 2012/13 grand final which ended in a triumphant 2-0 win over Western Sydney Wanderers.
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A third-place finish came next for the Mariners after Bozanic’s post-championship departure – and then came the lows: a six-season finals drought which included four finishes on the foot of the table.
It’s no surprise that when Bozanic returned in 2020/21, so did the feel-good factor in Gosford. A roaring start to the season backed by the steady progression of results which followed saw the Mariners quash the ill-feelings caused by three successive wooden spoons to finish third on the table and return to the finals series.
And now, surrounded by a band of young academy prospects in 2021/22 who look toward Bozanic and see their future, Mariners head coach Nick Montgomery says his impact in his side is vital, as the current captain plays a similar role at the club to what Montgomery played himself as a former player guiding a young Bozanic through the formative years of his career.
“It’s ironic,”Montgomery said. “When I came over from England Ollie was a young kid that came through the system here, and I think I helped him and the other younger players here in terms of giving them advice and mentoring them. And Ollie is doing that for me now.
“That’s what you need, you need senior players and we don’t have an abundance of senior players here but I’ve got the likes of Matty Simon and Ollie Bozanic that know the club, understand the club and have had successful careers.”
