Mariners come from behind to beat Jets in Unite Round F3 Derby

Central Coast Mariners turned a potential F3 Derby defeat into a much-needed win in a 2-1 comeback triumph over Newcastle Jets in Unite Round on Friday night.

The Jets took the lead through Thomas Aquilina in the 64th minute but the Mariners turned it around with two quickfire goals.

Brian Kaltak levelled the scores just two minutes after his side fell behind before an unfortunate own goal scored by Aleksandar Šuśnjar ensured the Mariners took all three points from the first F3 Derby of the season.

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The Mariners went winless through the first four rounds of the season (one loss, three draws) but broke the streak on Friday night with a much-needed result over their bitter rivals at Allianz Stadium.

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Central Coast Mariners dominated the first half, taking seven shots to Newcastle’s one, but put just one of seven shots on target in a frustrating opening to the derby.

Harrison Steele came close to opening the scoring in the 12th minute when played into the box by Mikael Doka, but his shot from a tight angle was well saved by Ryan Scott in goal for the Jets.

The Mariners continued to press for an opener and should have found one when Alou Kuol was played through on goal; the Central Coast striker was one-on-one with Scott and needed to hit the target but slipped as he made contact with the ball, resulting in a shot skied over the bar.

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The Jets’ first big chance of the night came just before the hour mark when Dane Ingham arrived in the box to send an unmarked header toward goal.

The Newcastle fullback made good contact but couldn’t keep the effort down in a major let-off for the Mariners.

With the game in the balance at 0-0, Jets head coach Rob Stanton dipped into his bench and the decision to bring Ben Gibson on for Clayton Taylor led to instant rewards.

Straight off the bench and into the action, Gibson supplied the assist for the opening goal scored by Aquilina as the Jets took a 1-0 lead – an advantage they held for mere minutes in the F3 Derby.

Just two minutes after falling behind, the Mariners struck back and it was Kaltak who supplied the equaliser with a well-timed header. Jets keeper Scott misjudged his attempted interception of the lofted delivery and a slight touch was all Kaltak needed to divert the ball over the line.

From 1-0 down to 2-1 up in the space of 11 minutes, the Mariners took the lead through Aleksandar Šuśnjar’s unfortunate own goal after Lucas Mauragis’ cross into the six-yard box that wrong-footed the Jets defender.