Central Coast Mariners head coach Nick Montgomery has tipped Garang Kuol to be the Socceroos’ impact player at next month’s FIFA Men’s World Cup after the teenager showed his ability to break a game apart off the bench in a stunning 4-2 win over Western United on Saturday afternoon.
The Mariners trailed Western 2-0 at half-time of the Isuzu UTE A-League clash at Central Coast Stadium when Montgomery injected Kuol into the action. The 18-year-old – who is bound for Premier League club Newcastle United in January – proceeded to tear the game open.
An electric burst through midfield by Kuol shortly after the break drew Nikolai Topor-Stanley into a red card offence; he then played a key role in his side’s surging comeback – most notably tying Western defender Ben Garuccio in knots to set up Jason Cummings for the first of four second-half Mariners goals.
“Everyone talks about Garang, the kid has so much quality,” Mariners boss Montgomery told Paramount+ after his side’s pulsating 4-2 win.
Everyone’s saying: ‘Start him’, but look: I think he’s not ready to start games because the impact he has when he comes on against Barcelona, for the Socceroos, in the A-League is magnificent.
“I don’t want to put that pressure on him, (but) if I was Graham Arnold I’d be looking to take him as an impact player. I told him that this week, I told him he needs to work harder and if he wants to start he needs to work harder, and show me he’s ready to start.
“But I thought today it was the right decision to bring him on at half time. He changed the game. His potential is massive and everyone can see that.”
Paramount+ co-commentator Grace Gill was awestruck by the 18-year-old’s impact off the bench in the Mariners’ first win of the campaign.
“He was the difference-maker for me,” Gill said.
“Whatever the question is, the answer is Garang Kuol.
“He was instrumental, the link-up play, the impact of course with Topor-Stanley’s (send-off) he was behind that foul as well. Every time he touched the ball… it’s that edge of your seat stuff, leaning forward, just looking for that point of difference – and today he was superb.”
Garang Kuol is set to star in Episode Four of A-Leagues All Access. Get an inside look at Kuol’s transfer to Premier League giants Newcastle United, and go behind the scenes of Central Coast’s 4-2 win over Western in KEEPUPs ground-breaking docuseries. Don’t miss the full episode, which airs at 7:30pm AEDT Thursday night, on KEEPUP.
VISIT THE A-LEAGUES ALL ACCESS HUB
‘Mariners mentality’ the key to outstanding comeback – Cummings
Jason Cummings was a player possessed in Central Coast’s comeback 4-2 win over Western United on Saturday afternoon.
The Socceroos striker did his own World Cup hopes no harm with a blistering second-half display, scoring Central Coast’s first and playing a heavy hand in all three of his side’s subsequent goals in a monumental turnaround which sunk the champions.
“It had a bit of everything,” Cummings told Paramount+ post-match. “We started really well, we were on top but they scored two goals which we were so frustrated (about) at half time.
“Second half we came out guns blazing. Obviously the red card helped us, and we took over in the end.
That’s the Mariners. That’s the Mariners mentality.
“That was us last season and in pre-season. We started the season slow with the first two games, and we showed what we’re all about today; character, resilience, we go down 2-0 and come out in the second half with our chests out. We showed everyone what we’re capable of.”
MATCH REPORT: CUMMINGS STARS AS MARINERS DOWN WESTERN
Joey Lynch, AAP
A standout second half from World Cup hopeful Jason Cummings has helped the Central Coast Mariners roar back from a two-goal deficit to down Western United 4-2 in Gosford on Saturday.
Visiting United rope-a-doped their way to a two-goal halftime lead through goals from Nicholas Milanovic and Connor Pain, but a straight red card to United defender Nikolai Topor-Stanley for a foul on Garang Kuol early in the second half sparked a dramatic turnaround in fortunes.
Having had two goals disallowed to that point, Cummings combined with Kuol to make it 2-1 before setting up substitutes Beni N’Kololo and Jacob Farrell to level then put the Mariners ahead respectively.
Capping off his day, the Scottish-born Socceroo then made it a hat-trick of assists when he cut the ball back to Paul Ayongo for an 88th-minute sealer.
After being kept quiet in the Mariners’ loss to Perth Glory the week prior, it was a major boost to Cummings’ hopes of earning a place in Graham Arnold’s 26-player Socceroos squad in Qatar.
He and fellow hopeful Kuol will have one final chance to mount their cases against Western Sydney next week, with the squad expected to be named on November 8.
Despite starting brightly, the Mariners were sucker-punched when, completely against the run of play, two quick forays forward by United led to goals for Milanovic and Pain in the 17th and 28th minutes.
Needing a spark, Mariners boss Nick Montgomery threw Kuol into the fray after the halftime break and the fringe-World Cup Socceroo quickly induced a rash challenge from Topor-Stanley that, upon VAR review, was upgraded from a yellow card to a straight red.
Backs to the wall and down to 10, United promptly collapsed as the Mariners came forward with venom and netted four goals inside 21 minutes to secure their first win of the season.
