A-League 2020: Jets held to scoreless draw by last-placed Mariners
The Mariners’ 11-match losing streak is over, while the Jets’ slim finals’ hopes have taken a blow.
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THE wooden spoon may be headed their way for the fourth time in fifth seasons but the Central Coast Mariners at least avoided an unwanted piece of A-League history in Gosford on Friday night.
The Mariners’ 0-0 draw with Newcastle snapped a run of 11 successive A-League defeats for Central Coast.
Twelve straight losses would have been a new A-League record.
Having just two matches left to play, the Mariners’ season can’t end soon enough despite the competition having only resumed last week after a COVID-19 enforced break of almost four months.
But at least they will take some consolation from ending their depressive run of defeats, and delivering a blow to arch-rivals Newcastle’s slim hopes of playing finals football.
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“It’s been a tough trot with all the losses,” Mariners coach Alen Stajcic said.
“To be able to show that resilience today was really pleasing.
“That’s a little bit of a monkey off the back. For us every game is a battle, every game is a challenge.”
From the high of beating first-placed Sydney FC 2-1 on Tuesday night, the eighth-placed Jets failed to deliver in the 50th F3 derby.
Despite the Jets’ quick turnaround between games, Newcastle coach Carl Robinson rewarded the team that started against Sydney by naming the same 11.
It meant star pair Dimitri Petratos and Joe Ledley again had to be content with spots among the substitutes.
Early on it looked a wise decision, with Newcastle having the best of first half.
Bernie Ibini’s combination on the right with Matthew Millar particularly caused the Mariners headaches.
Millar got behind the Mariners’ defence in the 34th minute, and laid the ball into the path of Roy O’Donovan, but the Irish marksman was too slow to react and the opportunity was gone.
The impressive Ibini had two chances in the space of 60 seconds in the 38th minute.
The first was blocked by Mariners defender Ziggy Gordon, while the second was parried to safety by goalkeeper Mark Birighitti.
The Jets were nearly made to pay for their wastefulness in the 43rd minute when Mariners attacker Samuel Silvera forced Newcastle keeper Lewis Italiano into a smart save on his near post.
Ibini and Millar were both forced off with injuries in the second half, and with their departures went the Jets’ hopes of winning.
Jets coach Robinson was left to lament his side’s failure to make the most of their first-half superiority.
“We should have scored, we could have scored but we didn’t score,” Robinson said.
“You worry then when you’re in control and you don’t score.”
Robinson said the Jets went from having “nothing to lose” against Sydney to “everything to lose” against the Mariners.
“We knew Central Coast would want to get that monkey off their back in relation to losing games and would do everything they could to stop us,” he said.
“We had to be better at breaking them down.”