Central Coast will be desperate to end a worrying run of away defeats when the club embarks on the toughest road trip of the season on Saturday.
The Mariners continue their Hyundai A-League campaign against a dangerous Perth at Members Equity Stadium.
Central Coast has proven to be a good traveller this season with its first loss on the road coming on Friday night against Melbourne at the Telstra Dome.
While the Mariners are good travellers, Perth are in winning form at home.
The Western Australian Club is unbeaten in its past four matches at home and will be out for another strong showing against the Mariners.
The Central Coast club walloped Perth when the teams met at Gosford earlier this season.
“Going to Perth is the toughest away trip in the league but we’ll be going over there hoping for a win,” Mariners coach Lawrie McKinna said.
“Our form away from home hasn’t been too bad. With a bit of luck we could have got something out of last week’s game against Melbourne. I’m confident we can get something out of the game.”
The Mariners will be without reliable defender Pedj Bojic against Perth. Bojic picked up his fifth yellow card against the Victory and is suspended.
David D’Apuzzo and Matthew Osman are both in contention to start at left back.
D’Apuzzo performed well in the National Youth League last week, while Osman is one of the most versatile players in the Mariners squad.
Osman has signed to play with the new Gold Coast franchise next season and is keen to end his time at the Mariners on a high.
