Sydney FC have gone down to the reigning Champions in a pre-season friendly which saw valuable first minutes for Joe Lolley and Douglas Costa heading into the 2024/25 season.
With Hayden Matthews, Corey Hollman and Adrian Segecic away with the Australian U23’s Ufuk Talay was forced to shuffle the pack and despite a strong second half showing, they were unable to break down a defensively orientated Mariners after falling behind in the first half.
All photos – Jaime Castaneda (@jamcas50 / IG)
Sydney FC 0 def. by Central Coast Mariners 2 (Doka 18’ pen, Edmondson 35’)
Moments That Mattered
18’ | DOKA FROM THE SPOT – The Mariners take the lead from the penalty spot.
33’ | GRANT DENIED – A great save denies the skipper on the volley from a dangerous free kick.
35’ | EDMONDSON MAKES IT TWO – The hosts counter and add a second before the half ends.
75’ | KUCHARSKI GOAL OFFSIDE – Jaiden Kucharski has the ball in the back of the net but the flag denies him.
What They Said – Joe Lolley
“It felt good to get some minutes after four months between my last match.
“The conditions were tough for my first game back but I think there is plenty for us to learn from in this 90 minutes”
Match Report
On a warm and windy Friday, Sydney FC took on last season’s Champions Central Coast Mariners in a friendly to conclude their pre-season camp on the Central Coast.
The Sky Blues started well and dominated the ball in the early stages and were unlucky to not go ahead when a cross to the back post found the head of Rhyan Grant and he took strong contact from the Mariners keeper Adam Pavlesic. The ball fell toward the goal but before it could cross the line it was swept away and no penalty was awarded for the collision.
Douglas Costa starting his first game despite being in the country for less than a week had some tidy touches on debut and almost had his first goal when a short corner gave him space on the corner of the box, but his curling left foot effort went just over.
As the hosts looked to build into the match, they would get a lifeline when the ball bounced around inside the Sydney penalty area and under challenge from Jordan Courtney-Perkins, Alou Kuol fell to the floor and the ref pointed to the spot for a penalty which Doka converted.
Rhyan Grant had another chance later in the half which was clawed away from the top corner. Ouahim’s free kick into the box was volleyed at the back post by Grant but Pavlesic made a great save to deny him from scoring the equaliser.
In what was originally a behind closed doors match, the school sports day that was occurring on the pitch next to the game at Tuggerah had a break and joined the crowd on the bleachers taking the official attendance to over 200 in what was a rather strange occurance for all involved.
With the possession mounting for Sydney FC, they would suffer an unfortunate ricochet when a shot from the edge was blocked which allowed the Mariners to counter and add a second before the break.
Sydney started the second half with brilliant intensity and caught the Mariners off guard on a few occasions but were unlucky with bobbles on the surface with Anthony Caceres one on one against Pavlesic at one stage.
Kucharski entered the contest and immediately looked to create, linking up well with Anthony Caceres but his volley on his weaker left side failed to trouble Pavlesic.
The Mariners were struggling to get out of their half and could only resort to long balls over the top which were easily dealt with by the Sky Blues defence.
Soon after, Sydney FC had the ball in the back of the net after a nice cut back from Nathan Amanatidis found Kucharski, however the number 25 was denied by the linesman’s flag.
With the clock ticking down, Marin France almost netted straight after coming off the bench when he headed a cross goalward, but Pavlesic made a nice save once again.
In the end, despite the constant pressure, the Sky Blues were unable to break through the Mariners and the scoreline didn’t shift from the half time whistle.
The Sky Blues will have one more friendly before their AFC Asian Champions League season gets underway against Eastern FC on Thursday 19th September 2024.
Line-Up
STARTING XI: 1. Andrew REDMAYNE, 4. Jordan COURTNEY-PERKINS, 8. Anas OUAHIM, 10. Joe LOLLEY (25. Jaiden KUCHARSKI 59’), 11. Douglas COSTA (24. Wataru KAMIJO HT), 15. Leo SENA, 16. Joel KING (32. Tyler WILLIAMS 76’), 17. Anthony CACERES, 23. Rhyan GRANT, 27. Nathan AMANATIDIS (33. Marin FRANCE 78’), 31. Will KENNEDY. (19. Mitch GLASSON 78’).
Unused Subs: 3. Aaron GURD, 12. Harrison DEVENISH-MEARES, 20. Tiago QUINTAL, 22. Max BURGESS.
