The picture told a thousand words: two of Central Coast’s brightest young stars, arm in arm, minutes after helping the Mariners to a Grand Final victory in Gosford.
In that moment, Miguel Di Pizio and Max Balard were in dreamland. Then, they spoke on what it meant to win the title, on home soil, in front of the biggest crowd Industree Group Stadium has ever seen, and the significance of the achievement rung loud and clear.
“I’ve never seen anything like it in my life,” Balard told Network 10.
“To have it on the Coast, the Grand Final, it’s super special. For the crowd to enjoy it with us, it just shows the community club we are. We just wanted to do it for the fans out here and it shows.”
Mariners fans provided the backdrop to the special interview, having joined the players and staff on the pitch soon after the final whistle blew.
Little more than half an hour earlier, the club was faced with the very real prospect of losing the Grand Final; Victory led 1-0 through Jason Geria into second-half stoppage time before Ryan Edmondson’s 91st-minute strike rescued the Mariners.
Edmondson would eventually score the sealing goal in the dying stages of extra time – but not before Di Pizio made history with the Mariners’ second of three goals in a resounding comeback win.
At 18 years of age, Di Pizio is the youngest-ever player to score in a Grand Final. Barely comprehending the magnitude of his achievement, he tried his best to put it into words.
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“Everything feels like a dream,” he said.
“Life isn’t feeling real at the moment, playing with these boys, it’s a special group and I’m so proud to play for this club and we showed tonight how much of a community club we are.
“This club means so much to me, it’s allowed me to progress in my career. I’m just so happy I’m able to play for a club like Central Coast.”
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Balard wasn’t willing to let Di Pizio’s modesty get in the way of hammering home the enormity of his contribution to the club’s second-consecutive Isuzu UTE A-League Championship, and an historic trophy treble in 2023-24 after the team previously secured both the Premiers Plate and the AFC Cup title.
“He’s humble right now because he’s an absolute superstar,” Balard said.
“To be the youngest goalscorer in a Grand Final, it’s something special. He’s got a great future ahead of him, I’m sure you’ll remember his name. A super game from (Miguel) off the bench, he was unbelievable, super proud of him.
“So many of the academy boys have come through from the Central Coast Mariners, we’re all super proud to play for this community and to represent the Central Coast.”
In a way, the Mariners’ Grand Final win on Saturday night was a celebration of two generations of players at the club – and Di Pizio played a significant role in highlighting that point with the goal that set the club on course to its third Isuzu UTE A-League Championship.
Down one end was Danny Vukovic, the Mariners’ captain who, at 39 years of age, became the oldest player to ever feature in an Isuzu UTE A-League Grand Final. Down the other end was Di Pizio, 18 years old and now forever a part of the club’s history after his record-setting goal.
Mariners head coach Mark Jackson spoke post-game about the immense credit the talented teenager deserves, not only for his display in the Grand Final, but for his actions in the weeks leading up to the title decider that saw him come close to earning a start on the biggest occasion on Isuzu UTE A-League calendar.
“We’ve got fantastic trust in his ability,” Jackson said.
“I challenged him a few weeks ago now to be better in duels and stronger, just to use his body. He’s still a young boy, he’s still growing into his body, but I said: ‘I want you to be stronger, and I want you to win more duels’. What did he do? The next day in training, he started doing that. That tells me I’ve got a young man there who wants to listen, learn and action what we want.
“He’s done that, and he’s gone from strength to strength. He’s gone on the pitch today and really impacted the game.”
