Central Coast Mariners 0 Sydney FC 0
Sydney FC fans enjoyed a fabulous season-ending party at Central Coast Stadium as the the Sky Blues besieged the Mariners goal and went down with a fight to the premiers on a cold, wet, breezy but magical A-League evening. There was drama and excitement in spades to make up for the lack of goals, and it was not just the players at the centre of the controversy. A battered and bruised Sydney team applauded the travelling masses at the end of momentous semi-final second-leg tie that saw their team come up short, but not for the want of trying.
Nights like these are to be cherished. Straight from the football field, okay after a celebratory beer after a sparkling Over 45s victory, whizzing past to fetch Michelle and then straight up the M1, we arrived in Gosford with an hour to spare. The town was cordoned off by police, the forecourt in front of the members’ stand as we passed in the car was animated, the magnitude of tonight’s crowd already in evidence, and the usual route to the town centre car park was closed. The lead us on a merry diversion around the back streets to our parking destination. We’ve never been this far up the multi-storey either, we were almost at the top.
With the intention of heading to Hotel Gosford for a cheeky pre-match pint, the appearance of the marching Cove into the street under the car park changed our plans completely, and we were more than happy to get in amongst it. The thick orange smoke from a smoke bomb was enough to disorient at one point, scarves over faces and squinted eyes the only way to get through the thick fumes, with no idea which direction you were moving in. The chanting was fierce, this was such a big game and everyone knew it. A sell-out, and we were marching into battle to back up the players on the field in their search for an A-League finals spot. There was no suggestion of doubt. We were going to win this.
Thanks to Craig’s tip of a promotional ute filled with energy drinks, we were loaded up with fruity toxic chemicals by the time we reached the away gate, but not before passing the main gate and receiving plenty of barracking from the home fans. We literally couldn’t give a sh*t what they thought. This was the ultimate Central Coast Away trip, and we were here to roar on our beloved Sky Blues. The scene at the main gate was like something from a South American game with people filling the street and the first concourse on the level above. The handheld scanning by the gate staff worked a treat and we were in, and made our way down into the usual bay where no one sits and everyone stands. I don’t know where our seats were meant to be, there were no numbers on the seats anyway, and thankfully we didn’t endure the “excuse me, that’s my seat” scenario. This was proper away day football viewing, everyone standing, flags obscuring the view, just a brilliant scene.
The playing surface looked superb, the palm trees were lit up beautifully, there was a healthy presence of security, familiar unfriendly faces from previous beach parties here, and the stadium filled up, with the anticipation growing. The fireworks were in place and went off spectacularly to greet the entrance of the players, the clock already at the scheduled kick-off time and the game got underway a couple of minutes late to a countdown. The stadium was at full volume. This is what it’s all about!
Our regular capo had lost his voice – it’s quite a key part of the capo toolbelt – so we had a new face on the mega; from our position the acoustics weren’t great and we couldn’t quite hear what was going on, but our new man proceeded to get the Cove bouncing, along with some expert drumming from his accomplice. A new world record drumming speed for Super Sydney FC before the game, anyone? It was good also to hear the noise from the Mariners fans, and not just the Yellow Army behind the goal at the far end. The football-loving locals were becoming accustomed to big nights in Gosford and this was no exception.
Sydney were terrific in the first half. We had chances, mainly up the right with Maxi Burgess the main instigator, and Fabio Gomes should have given us the lead early on when released one-on-one with Danny Vukovic. There was plenty of injury time accruing as Luke Brattan was on the end of a heavy challenge, one that VAR didn’t even flinch at, despite the foot being high. Chief tormentor Christian Theoharous almost unlocked the defence down the left in front of us but Sydney stood firm, and the Sky Blues were much the better side, enjoying the lions’ share of meaningful possession. The atmosphere was so good, and the football so entertaining, that half-time came with a shock, but allowed us to have a breather and take a seat.
Speaking of which, I might be speaking out of turn here, but those sitting or crouching chants are a right bugger. It’s okay from time to time, but after a day of refereeing and playing, the last thing this middle-aged pair of knees needs is a work out. Plus it is a bit of an atmosphere killer too – I remember doing one at Leichhardt Oval a few years ago and the opposition scored when we were doing it, so perhaps it feels like an unlucky thing to do. Feel free to tell me to “suck it up”, “sing or f*ck off” or whatever.
The second half was thrilling. The bumper-sized Rockstar energy drink was doing its job, and we rode the emotions of an onslaught on the Mariners goal. Bratts smashed one in from miles out in front of us that whistled wide, and our captain was there at the other end to clear one off the line with a suspicious handball-looking chest. Sydney were walking a tightrope as they worked out when to gamble it all in search of the elusive equaliser. The Mariners coach got into a war of words with our World Cup referee Ali Faghani, and picked up a yellow and then a red, before eliciting a massive cheer from the crowd on the far side – apparently he had said something into the camera on his way down the tunnel. Maxi was terrific; he wriggled into the box, and a shot hit an arm. Penalty! Had to be! The referee was unmoved, natural position, despite 99% of those being given in leagues around the world. Handball in the box, regardless of intent, usually means penalty.
We were starting to feel as though the footballing gods were against us. The big moment came with just over an hour gone. Sydney stole the ball in a great position, Robert Mak got the ball on the edge of the area and tricked past a player to shoot. A deflection took the ball spinning towards goal with Vukovic beaten and Brian Kaltack raced back to clear the ball from over the line. Goal, surely! We were dead in line and the ball looked well in. I was in a state of celebration akin to that moment behind the goal where Mathew Leckie scored against Denmark. Gooooaaaaallll! Incredibly the goal wasn’t given, and play continued for a minute or so afterwards, the fans almost urging Sydney to put the ball out so VAR could have a look. We were convinced. The referee headed to the screen. It had to be! Incredibly, after all the deliberation, an offside Gomes was adjudged to have been involved in the play by brushing Kaltack, thus allegedly impeding him, and he was therefore adjudged to be involved. Awful. We were feeling really indignant now, but the Sky Blues were totally dominating.
Paddy Wood was on, looking for redemption at this stadium, and Jaiden Kucharski apearred for a cameo. This had shades of Macarthur away, when Sydney FC toyed with the ball around the box, but did nothing to prise open the wall of defenders. The final chance was a Gomes header that sailed over, potentially the only header he had won all night, and after seven minutes of injury time, the final whistle condemned us to a premature and unsatisfying conclusion to the season. The songs of defiance had started well before the end, and it had the empty feeling of a failed relegation battle, if Australian fans ever get to experience that. We’ll meet again, don’t know where, don’t know when.
The players came across to give their thanks to the travelling fans, Joe Lolley was one who stayed there until the end, and the staff came over too. Bratts surprisingly could still walk after being pole-axed twice during the game, and we were absorbed in the love being shown between players and fans down below. We were one of the last groups out of the stadium, some action still happening near the tunnel and there were still fans in the home end in party mode. We headed back to the car park along with half the population of the Central Coast. After paying the $10 parking, the queue to exit was right up to where we were parked in the upper levels, so we made the call to abandon ship and sample the Gosford nightlife for a quick commiseratory beer and to plan the following weekend now that a grand final was not on the menu.
After baulking at the mammoth queue to get in to the Hotel Gosford, which was way too young a crowd for us, we headed instead to the Railway Hotel just along the road. A much more appropriate venue, with the Under Scrutiny cover band pumping out modern hits, and we were there for a couple of drinks until 11.30pm when we made the call to head home. That’s when the fun started. Car park closed and locked at 11.40pm and we arrived to heavy metal shutters and a deactivated lift. Calls to the security numbers yielded no help whatsoever, other than “the car park closes at 3pm on Saturdays. We’ll call you back in five minutes.” Thankfully Michelle found a better number to call and negotiated our release with a princely sum of $63 being demanded. Luckily we weren’t the only ones in the same situation, so the $63 was split between the parties in a fantastic show of community. It was now 12.30pm, the security guard arrived for his weekly after-hours re-opening of the gates and after paying another $22 for the parking (for some reason) we were on our way. Relieved! $10 converted into $95 for the privilege of avoiding the half-hour queue on exit. Pish!
We arrived back in the north western suburbs of Sydney after dropping Prof a bit closer to home, well after 1.30am, that magical time of morning when red lights last for five minutes and the only life in the suburbs is the late night bar with the 3am mythical prosperity lounge. What a peculiar way to bring the 2023/24 season to a close.
So, a brilliant night at Central Coast Stadium with Sydney FC hard done by but ultimately beaten over two legs. It was exciting to the end, the Cove sang from start to finish, and it was a fitting entry into the memory banks as the club membership renewals crush our dwindling savings accounts this week. A season that gave us some magical moments on the park (4-1 at Commbank, 3-1 at Mariners) and some not-so-magical moments (1-0 at Macarthur, 3-1 at Newcastle), but gave us so many fantastic moments off the field. That’s it, until we get our Australia Cup campaign underway. Global Football Week and the Matildas coming right up – stay tuned for more match wraps from this never-ending football blog.
Forza Sydney FC!