A stirring 2-0 win over Adelaide United on a rain-soaked Industree Group Stadium in Gosford on Wednesday night – a rescheduled final round game of the 2023/24 season – was enough to secure the Mariners the No.1 spot on the ladder and the club’s third ever Premier’s title.
But celebrations have been brief as coach Mark Jackson prepares to lead his team into the AFC Cup Final against crack Lebanese team Al Ahed in Oman this Monday (2am AEST) before they set their sights on back-to-back A-League Championship titles here in Australia.
In an extraordinary season on the back of the club’s Championship success last year, the all-conquering Mariners have in 2023/24:
• Won the A-Leagues Club Championship as the best-performed club across all grades;
• Finished Top-4 in the Liberty A-League women’s premiership in the W team’s first year back in the competition (beaten on aggregate by Sydney FC in the Semi-Final last Saturday);
• Won the 2023/24 Premier’s Plate after finishing first on the Isuzu Ute A-League men’s ladder;
• Become only the third Australian club to make the AFC Final, with the winner of Monday’s game to receive a season-defining $2.3M in prizemoney;
• Set up a blockbuster second Semi-Final at Industree Group Stadium on Saturday 18 May to earn the right to play in the
A-League Grand Final and the chance to go back-to-back in the Championship.
“What the Mariners have achieved this year has been nothing short of phenomenal,” says legendary Australian football writer Ray Gatt, who now calls the Central Coast home.
“The Mariners are The Little Club That Could, they don’t have the resources of the big clubs with rich owners and all the facilities like Sydney FC, the Western Sydney Wanderers, Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory. But they have out-performed them two years in a row.
“They have still got some big games ahead and we don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, but the Mariners have already won the A-Leagues Club Championship and the Premier’s Plate this season and are now looking to add the prestigious AFC Cup and a second successive A-League Championship, I’m not sure we haven’t seen anything quite like this in the A-League before.”
The Mariners are blessed to have some of the most passionate fans in the league and also one of the best home grounds in the competition, the immaculately-managed Industree Group Stadium at Gosford.
The stadium will be packed to capacity for the Mariners’ upcoming Second Semi-Final on May 18, with fans already scrambling for tickets and hospitality options.
While they have plenty of home support on the Coast, they have also become “everyone’s second team” with so many appreciating their rags-to-riches story.
The Mariners lost their coach and key players after their Grand Final success last year and began the new season 0-4 under new coach Jackson.
But they have lost just two games since in 27 rounds of high-pressure A-League football.
And after travelling more than 100,000km to seven different countries, the Mariners are now eyeing AFC Cup glory against
The Yellow Castle, the name given to the famous Lebanese club Al Ahed, at Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Oman in the early hours of Monday.
Coach Jackson deserves enormous credit for the Mariners’ A-League men’s success.
"We are fully focused and excited for the games ahead,” Jackson said.
"We're under no illusions,. we have some big hurdles to overcome.
"But momentum is a big thing and we’ll try to keep that going and keep our focus there. The lads and staff have been fantastic and we have to keep pushing.
“Our fans on the Central Coast are the best and we want to do well for them."
