Kenley Ward
Dailysports's expert
On Tuesday, May 13, in the preliminary round of the Australia Cup, Central Coast Mariners will face Perth Glory. The match will be played on neutral ground in Darwin. Here’s my pick for the winner in this clash.
Key facts and head-to-head history
- Central Coast Mariners are winless in their last four matches.
- Perth Glory have won just one of their last seven away games.
- Neither Central Coast Mariners nor Perth Glory have ever won the Australia Cup.
- This season, the teams have already met three times. Central Coast Mariners won once 3-1, with the other two encounters ending in draws.
Match preview
The Australia Cup is the last chance for Central Coast Mariners to salvage their season. The team, champions of Australia in the previous two campaigns, didn’t even make the playoffs this time around. Mark Jackson’s side finished only tenth with 26 points.
Central Coast Mariners started this season decently, but faltered dramatically as the campaign wore on. In the run-in, they managed to collect just one point from four matches. In their last game, they lost to Brisbane Roar (1-2), drew 2-2 with Macarthur, and suffered a humiliating 0-6 defeat against Newcastle Jets.
Perth Glory, meanwhile, have been the worst team in the A-League this season. The orange and purple side picked up just 17 points and never really challenged for a playoff spot. That came as no surprise, given the squad depth and the club’s financial situation.
In the closing stages of the A-League regular season, Perth Glory managed a 1-0 win over Wellington Phoenix, lost 0-1 to Auckland, beat Adelaide United, and were defeated 1-3 by Western United.
Probable lineups
- Central Coast Mariners: Perak-Kallen; Kaltek, Sainsbury, Poll; Doka, Imes, McCalmont, Mauragis; Vitor Feijao, Kuol, Teoharus
- Perth Glory: Sail; Okamoto, Mrsela, Murdokutas, Misao; Mileusnic, Amos, Pennington, Wales; Pirman, Taggart
Central Coast Mariners vs Perth Glory prediction
Central Coast Mariners are out of form, but they still look stronger than their opponents. My pick is for the nominal home side to win.
