Reddy. Seip. Go!
Take a bow, Marcel Seip. Dogged with the tag of not being Patrick Zwaanswijk, the dour Dutchman was the hero of the hour with his winning goal in this important encounter. From wooden clog to Dutch Master: check out the volley Van Persie!
Take a bow, too, Liam Reddy. The much-travelled much-troubled gloveman stepped up yet again to rescue the Mariners; his saving of the penalty the turning point of the game. At the A-League’s last chance saloon he has moved from social pariah to genuine contender for the Mariners’ player of the year.
Phil Moss said at the weekend that every Mariner was a first team player, even those who have to sit and watch from the stands. He stood by his word and brought Brent Griffiths and Isaka Cernak into the starting line-up. Matt Simon, not surprisingly after the battering he took against the Wanderers, and Eddie Bosnar, were not in the squad.
The first half was almost uneventful; the Mariners were calm, composed and confident but quite conservative. It was almost a case of nothing to see here, move right along. Bernie had a half chance when the ball rebounded off the post off a defender and should have done better when he raced through but his touch was just too heavy; a lay-off to the unmarked Cernak may have been a better option. Bernie did net but only after a foul for pushing by the energetic Cernak. And Kim Seung-yong disappointed with a poor free kick right on the edge of the area. Reddy provided the real highlight: his intelligent reading of the play having him in position to pull off a smart one handed save from a rare Guoan break away.
In the second half The Mariners needed to lift the tempo and they did with the motivated Duke prominent. On the hour mark Moss made a significant tactical change, bringing on Storm Roux for Anderson; Seip moving to centre back. Roux brought attacking intent down the right and was quickly involved.
It was an indication of how well the Mariners were defending when Guoan took off the ineffective Utaka, who had been so devastating in Beijing; Griffiths and Zac Anderson had done a pretty good job. Griffiths with his impressive physique, tanned body and golden locks looks like a Greek Adonis; the pairing with Zac Anderson must be the best looking combo in world football! Not that I need to tell them that; I am sure they already know.
Looking good may be the mantra of modern society but it doesn’t mean you know how to defend and Adonis was completely undone by the skills of Guerron, and, thrown off balance, awkwardly brought down the attacker for a clear cut penalty. Griffiths looked mortified but Liam Reddy is a winner and he saved Griffiths, and the Mariners, from disaster. The penalty was a poor one; it wasn’t well placed and was at saveable height but the secret to saving a penalty is to guess the right way to dive. Reddy did; it was the turning point of the game and quite possibly of the Mariners’ ACL campaign.
Ten minutes later came Seip’s winner. Bernie had a shot blocked and the ball fell to Nick Montgomery. Monty had not had the best night with his passing until now but played a delightful Flores killer pass to free Kim in the penalty area. Kim, who had a shocker of a night from set pieces, delivered the perfectly weighted cross to Seip. Seip surprised us all as he elegantly caressed the volley into the back of the net leaving the goalkeeper helpless. It was as good a goal as you will see all season.
There was to be no way back for Guoan; the pumped up Mariners, with Fitzgerald on for Cernak, pushed for more. Rose almost wriggled through. Trifiro replaced Kim. In time added on a dazzling combination down the left almost had the Mariners in for a second and then Fitzgerald, played in by an excellent ball from Duke, found himself one on one with the keeper; all Fitzgerald had to do was round the keeper but the keeper showed that Mat Ryan isn’t the one with good feet and he read Fitzgerald easily to dispossess him and play the ball to safety.
With Simon and Bosnar not playing, and Caceres and Sterjovski warming the bench, you can only agree with Mossey’s view on the strength of his squad. The Mariners were completely unafraid of Guoan. This was a famous and deserved victory, a great night for Central Coast football. Roll on Perth.
The exploits of Reddy and Seip aside, I thought the back four did very well, apart from Griffith’s calamity. Rose was quality for the ninety minutes; Roux gave a real lift down the right. Montgomery and Hutchinson provided real steel in midfield; Kim had his best game in Mariners colours. Duke’s unrewarded effort upfront was extraordinary; such energy! My MoM goes to the Dutchman, not just for that exquisite goal but also for quality defending in two different positions. Congratulations Marcel Seip, a Central Coast Mariner in his own right.
