The first game on Saturday for A-League Round 19 is between Central Coast Mariners and Sydney FC. The opening kick-off is set to commence at 5.30pm AEDT with the game to be played at Central Coast Stadium. The favourite for the match is home team Central Coast Mariners. View our preview and teams for the game between Central Coast Mariners and Sydney FC.
Round: Round 21, Saturday, March 1 at 5.30pm AEDT.
Stadium: Central Coast Stadium
Head to head: Played 27 – Wins: Central Coast 10, Sydney FC 10, Draws: 7
Previous encounter: Sydney FC 0 – 1 Central Coast, January 18 2013
Central Coast Mariners $2.30 vs Sydney FC $3.00 at Sportsbet Australia get a $250 FREE BET on this match
Central Coast Mariners $2.25 vs Sydney FC $3.05 at Luxbet Australia get a $500 FREE BET on this match
Odds Comparison:
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| Central Coast Mariners | 2.30 | 2.30 | 2.25 | 2.30 | 2.30 | 2.20 |
| Draw | 3.40 | 3.40 | 3.30 | 3.40 | 3.40 | 3.40 |
| Sydney FC | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.05 | 3.00 | 3.00 | 3.00 |
All odds are subject to change. Odds listed are correct at the time of the latest update.
Tips: Sydney FC to win.
Teams:
Central Coast Mariners Squad:
1.Justin PASFIELD (Gk), 3.Joshua ROSE, 4.Marcel SEIP, 5.Zachary ANDERSON, 6.Brent GRIFFITHS, 7.John HUTCHINSON (C), 8.Nick MONTGOMERY, 9.Mitchell DUKE, 11.Nick FITZGERALD, 12.Liam REDDY (Gk), 15.Storm ROUX, 17.Anthony CACERES, 19.Matt SIMON, 20.Bernie IBINI, 21.Mile STERJOVSKI, 25.Eddy BOSNAR, 26.KIM Seung-yong, 29.Matt SIM
**two to be omitted**
Ins: 3.Joshua ROSE (return from suspension), 6.Brent GRIFFITHS (return from suspension), 11.Nick FITZGERALD (return from suspension), 19.Matt SIMON (return from suspension)
Outs: 22.Tom SLATER (omitted), 28.Glen TRIFIRO (omitted)
Unavailable: 10.Marcos FLORES (knee – season), 14.Michael MCGLINCHEY (on loan – Vegalta Sendai), 18.Michael NEILL (knee – season), 23.Adam KWASNIK (knee – season)
Sydney FC squad:
1.Ivan NECEVSKI (gk), 4.Ranko DESPOTOVIC, 5.Matt JURMAN, 6.Nikola PETKOVIC, 9.Corey GAMEIRO, 10.Alessandro DEL PIERO (c), 11.Richard GARCIA, 13.Sasa OGNENOVSKI, 17.Terry ANTONIS, 19.Nick CARLE, 20.Vedran JANJETOVIC (gk), 21.Milos DIMITRIJEVIC, 22.Ali ABBAS, 24.Hagi GLIGOR, 28.Matt THOMPSON, 29.Alec UROSEVSKI, 34.Aaron CALVER 36.Themba MUATA-MARLOW
**Two to be omitted**
Ins: Aaron CALVER, (Returns from Suspension), Nick CARLE (Return from injury), Milos DIMITRIJEVIC (promoted)
Outs: Daniel PETKOVSKI (Omitted)
Unavailable: Rhyan GRANT (knee – season), Pedj BOJIC (back, – indefinite),
Preview:
Form: Past five matches Central Coast Mariners: LLLLW Sydney FC: WWLLW
The Game: Central Coast Mariners are in the midst of one of their worst form runs in their history as they stare down the barrel of five straight losses across all competitions. Belted last week during the second half by Wellington as the Phoenix came from behind for a 4-1 win, things won’t get any easier this week as the Mariners attempt to overcome a mid-week trip to South Korea – where they lost 2-0 in their AFC Champions League opener to FC Seoul – with a clash against a Sydney side that may just be finding some momentum with two straight wins. The Big Issue: Central Coast simply have to find a way to score to put pressure on their opponents. In their five-game losing streak they have scored just three goals and wasted a host of opportunities. Against Wellington, Mile Sterjovski missed a penalty and saw another good chance saved on the line. If either of those efforts had gone in, last Friday night’s game could have had a significantly different outcome as there were times when the Mariners were controlling the second half before the Phoenix caught them on the break on a few occasions. Central Coast also have to find a way to stop conceding around half-time as well, with Kenny Cunningham’s goal last week within moments of the re-start being a prime example. For Sydney, the big issue remains their reliance on marquee man Alessandro Del Piero. In their win against Perth Glory it was Del Piero doing the damage in a match where the Sky Blues were forced on the defensive and the pattern repeated itself in last week’s 2-0 win over Newcastle. For much of that encounter, the Jets dominated Sydney and fund several holes in their defence without putting them away. Of course, having been kept in the contest by Newcastle’s generosity, the Sky Blues hit back with second-half goals from Sasa Ognenovoski and a Del Piero penalty. But the fact Sydney were simply prepared to play deep without really taking the game on may not be such a good sign.
The Game Breaker: Alessandro Del Piero. The Italian veteran is keeping Sydney FC in the finals hunt with his efforts over the last couple of weeks, but he is probably due a quiet game and Sydney seem to really struggle when this occurs. That being said, the Del Piero combination with Ranko Despotovic appears to be blossoming as the link-up work between the pair contributed to one goal against Perth and almost led to another against the Jets.
Prediction: Central Coast 1 Sydney FC 0 The Mariners went into last week’s clash with Wellington undermanned as Matt Simon, Josh Rose, Nick Fitzgerald and Brent Griffiths were all suspended. All of those players will be available, while new recruit Eddy Bosnar and forward Mile Sterjovski will also be fresh after not making the midweek trip to Seoul. Central Coast will be desperate to overturn their losing run but one suspects this will be something of a grind as they lack the class to finish off opportunities without departed striker Daniel McBreen. The Phoenix exposed how vulnerable the Mariners can be on the counter and the Sky Blues will definitely try and exploit this, but having beaten Sydney 1-0 on two occasions so far this season, I think the Gosford side will make it a hat-trick of such results as they return to winning ways.