Jets v Mariners: Vote for your favourite F3 Derby at Gosford
There have been upsets, blowouts and a whole heap of drama. As the Mariners and Jets prepare to clash on Saturday, we’ve taken a look at our favourite F3 Derbies in Gosford.
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It’s back. One of the A-League Men’s most passionate derbies returns this weekend with the Central Coast Mariners hosting the Newcastle Jets in Gosford.
Both sides have famously been bitter rivals since the inception of the A-League in 2005, with the derby named after the F3 Freeway (now the M1) that separates the two clubs.
The iconic Central Coast Stadium hosted the first ever meeting between the two sides in the league, which fittingly finished as a 1-1 draw, and is set to host the 60th ALM edition on Saturday.
Over the years there have been upsets, blowouts, contentious decisions and even a championship decider, with players crossing the divide and fans showing no mercy.
Ahead of the big game, two of our writers – one a Mariners’ diehard, the other a Jets’ tragic – have dived through the memory bank, sifted through the archives to compile a list of their favourite five derbies at Gosford. Take a look and some classic derbies and don’t forget to vote for your favourite moment below.
Central Coast Mariners
5) Battle for the wooden spoon
Round 26, 2016-17: Mariners 2-0
The 2016-17 season wasn’t one to remember for either team, with the Jets and the Mariners fighting it out with each other and Adelaide United to get off the bottom of the ladder by the end of the season.
With two games remaining, securing all three points in the derby would go a long way for the Mariners to avoid a second consecutive wooden spoon.
The home side hadn’t beaten their rivals in seven matches and were desperate to end their nine-game winless run in the league.
Mariners legend Nick Montgomery put his side in front in the first half before Fabio Ferreira added a second for a solid 2-0 win.
The Jets’ 2-0 loss to Sydney in the final round of the season saw them collect the wooden spoon, while the Mariners finished on solitary point ahead in eighth, in what would be their highest position for the next three years.
4) Mariners only score belters
Round 16, 2013-14: Mariners 3-0
The Mariners were showing no signs of a post-Championship slump when they met the Jets for the first time in 2014, when they produced some of the goals of the season in an epic display.
Anthony Caceres scored his first A-League goal with a bullet from just outside the box, while Daniel McBreen matched the effort with a floater into the top corner.
Central Coast stalwart Matt Simon scored the final goal of the match with a solid header from close range from a corner, adding to his eventual nine derby goals across his two stints with the club.
While Mariners keeper Liam Reddy kept a clean sheet, he partly had Newcastle striker Emile Heskey to thank, with the former Premier League star spraying a golden chance over the crossbar from just six yards out late in the first half, much to the absolute joy of the Mariners fans in attendance.
3) New Year’s Eve demolition
Round 16, 2005-06: Mariners 4-1
The Mariners’ New Year’s Eve games have been a staple of the A-League calendar since the very first season, and it all kicked off with massive F3 Derby win for the yellow and navy.
It was the third meeting between the Mariners and Jets during the 2005-06 season, with the first ending in a 1-1 draw and Newcastle claiming a 1-0 win at home later in the year.
The match was everything Mariners could have hoped for in a derby, finishing with a blowout 4-1 scoreline and a contentious red card to Jets’ defender Matteo Corbo for an elbow to the face that would have almost certainly been overturned if VAR had existed.
Andre Gumprecht opened the scoring just four minutes in before Damian Brown produced a belting free kick to put the home side 2-0 up at the break.
A second half brace from John Hutchinson was only dampened by a late Jets’ consolation goal, however the Mariners still headed into 2006 with three points, leapfrogging the Jets on the ladder into third.
2) Mariners’ spectacular revenge
Round 1 (rescheduled), 2022-23: Mariners 3-0
While the 2022-23 season ended in a second championship for the Central Coast, they had a mixed start to their campaign, only managing three wins from their opening seven games, which included a 2-1 loss in the season’s first F3 Derby in Gosford.
When the bitter rivals faced off again just two weeks later to play out their postponed round one fixture, the Mariners were a completely different side.
Brazilian Marco Tulio opened the scoring with an incredible chip from close to the halfway line, with the ball sailing over Jets’ keeper Jack Duncan who could only watch as it floated into the back of the net.
New defender Brian Kaltak showed early signs of his ‘Brick Wall of Gosford’ nickname, taking a Beka Mikeltadze shot to the face in some desperate goal line defence to deny the Jets a goal.
Jason Cummings produced his fifth and final derby goal while Jacob Farrell did what Jacob Farrell does best and forced a penalty from a handball in the box, expertly converted by Frenchman Beni N’Kololo.
Substitute Sasha Kuzevski was unable to make it a four with an open goal begging, but the soon-to-be champions settled for a solid 3-0 win.
1) The ultimate underdog comeback
Major semi-final leg two, 2007-08: Mariners 3-0
The 2007-08 A-League Men’s season was a big one for F3 Derbies, with the Jets and Mariners meeting six times throughout the campaign.
The Mariners edged out the Jets to claim their first premiership on goal difference on the final day of the regular season, setting up a tense battle for a straight path to the grand final.
Newcastle hosted the first leg of the home-and-away major semi-final, taking down the Mariners 2-0 and heading to Gosford with their sights already set on the decider.
What followed in the second leg is one of the greatest comeback stories in A-Leagues history.
Adam Kwasnik gave the Mariners hope late in the first half with a ridiculous goal from the top of the box, before consistent pressure from forward Sasho Petrovski finally paid off as he levelled the aggregate score and forced extra time.
Petrovski once again found the back of the net to put the Mariners up 3-2 on aggregate and some spectacular saves by Danny Vukovic secured the Mariners’ place in the grand final.
Newcastle Jets
5) Jets break through for first success
Round 20, 2007-08: Newcastle 2-1
As the overall record suggests, Gosford hasn’t always been a happy hunting ground for the Jets, and it actually took Newcastle three years to first taste victory on Central Coast soil.
It was round 20 of the 2007/08 season, with both teams flying high at the top of the table.
Things couldn’t have started any better for the Jets (or been more bittersweet for the Mariners), with Budgewoi boy and former Mariners’ academy player James Holland finishing off a brilliant full-field counter to put Newcastle ahead in the sixth minute.
Adam Kwasnik pulled one back three minutes later before the man of the season, Joel Griffiths, ultimately scored the winner in the 52nd minute with a lovely touch and finish to give the Jets their first away three points in the derby.
The win proved to be a precursor of things to come, with Newcastle famously defeating the Mariners 1-0 in the grand final at the Sydney Football Stadium just six weeks later.
4) Ugarkovic breaks the drought
Round 21, 2015-16: Newcastle 1-0
Perhaps more than other fans, Jets and Mariners supporters certainly know what it’s like to go through tough times, and that was certainly the case when Newcastle arrived in Gosford towards the end of the 2015-16 season.
Having collected the wooden spoon the season before, the Jets hadn’t won in nine derbies (although five of those games had been draws) and were desperate for three points down south.
In a match that was hardly a classic, midfielder Steven Ugarkovic broke two droughts with one shot, not only scoring his first A-League goal but ensuring that bragging rights travelled up the F3 for the first time in three and a half years.
3) Throw out the form guide
Round 23, 2020-21: Newcastle 2-0
Things were looking grim for the Jets when they took the trip south towards the end of the 2020-21 season.
After a disastrous campaign that saw coach Carl Robinson walk out on the club shortly before the start of the season, they were sitting in last place, staring down the barrel of a wooden spoon after not having won in 13 starts.
On the other hand, the Mariners were flying high in third place, playing some excellent football as they eyed off the finals.
But just when the result seemed like a forgone conclusion, the Jets proved the old adage true that you should throw out the form guide for a derby.
In one of the great gutsy derby performances, Roy O’Donovan and Lucas Mauragis bagged first half goals as Newcastle claimed a 2-0 win.
The win not only restored some pride in the jersey, but kickstarted an end of season revival that saw the team claim seven points from a possible last nine to jump out of last place and leave Melbourne Victory with the spoon.
2) O’Donovan goes from villain to hero
Round 1, 2017/18: Newcastle 5-1
It’s fair to say most fans had a love-hate relationship with striker Roy O’Donovan.
A wholehearted player who gave his all and had incredible quality in front of goal, it was easy to see why fans of whatever team he was playing for loved him.
But on the other side of the coin, O’Donovan’s physical, all-in style and ability to pick up a card meant that he became somewhat of a hate figure for rival fans.
After leading the line for the Mariners for a couple of seasons, it’s fair to say that the Irishman won over Jets fans on October 7, 2017.
In a juicy combination of being round one of the season, his first game for Newcastle and first against the Mariners all wrapped into one, O’Donovan put on a masterclass with a first half hat-trick that included a brilliant header for his third.
Not done there, the striker helped set up goals for Joe Champness and Dimi Petratos in the second half to cap off a five-star performance and give the Jets a magical 5-1 win.
That was just the beginning of O’Donovan’s F3 Derby dominance, as he went on to score eight goals in the fixture (seven of which for the Jets).
The win also marked a golden run of five-straight wins for the Jets over the Mariners, which to this day stands as the longest winning streak between the sides.
1) 8-2.
Round 27, 2017/18: Newcastle 8-2.
The scoreline pretty much says it all in what is undoubtedly the Jets’ greatest F3 derby moment in Gosford.
Riley McGree scored a hat-trick, Roy O’Donovan a brace while Joe Champness, Lachlan Jackson and Dimi Petratos all hit the back of the net against a limp Mariners’ outfit.
And if the scoreline was brilliant, the circumstances were absolutely delightful for the Jets.
In what was the final game of the regular season, the thumping condemned the Mariners to the first of what were three wooden spoons in a row, while Newcastle finished in second en route to the grand final.
The victory remains the Jets’ greatest win and the Mariners’ heaviest defeat (shared with the 8-2 flogging at the hands of the Wellington Phoenix a year later).
And long may it reign.
What has been your favourite F3 derby in Gosford? Vote now!
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Originally published as Jets v Mariners: Vote for your favourite F3 Derby at Gosford
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