We may have done it the hard way, but we finally secured the A-League Premiership (nothing minor about it) in the very last game of the regular season.
This was a huge achievement for the club and one that outweighs Grand Final success in the eyes of many fans I speak with. Consistency over 21 weeks shines brighter than one frantic month of finals football.
Grabbing first place also secures a spot in the 2009 AFC Champions League. Playing the best of the best from Asia is what every fan, player and coach is really after and having already earned this right, we can cruise through the finals with less pressure than the other teams. We can simply celebrate our moment in the spotlight.
Whatever happens in the rest of the finals, the fans will be looking forward to next season with great anticipation. Of the teams who have enjoyed Premiership and Championship success so far, being Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne and the Mariners, I believe its us who stand the best chance of backing up our fantastic season with another two or three that are equally as good.
Adelaide United, who finished in the top two in the first two A-League seasons, benefited from older players who were very consistent. They failed in both finals series, and now their squad has broken up, they missed the four.
Sydney FC have also relied on older players to make the finals every year, and win the Grand Final in the first year, but their instability on and off the field has stopped them from delivering genuine sustained success.
Then there is Melbourne Victory, who appear to be a one-hit wonder after falling from the lofty perch they created for themselves last year.
Back on Premiership Coast, there is a dynasty in the making. We have the most important piece of the puzzle intact: Lawrie McKinna. He is a manager who understands the game in this country and what the Mariners need to do to succeed. He could replicate Sir Alex Ferguson of Manchester United who has been at that club for 21 years, continually planning a year or two ahead to ensure ongoing glory.
We have a club who shares that philosophy. The backroom staff have carefully built the grassroots support since day one and the bumper attendances at Bluetongue are the proof in the pudding.
The club is also a step or three ahead of the pack in terms of setting up our youth academy. Such is the insular state of football on the Central Coast, the Mariners can quite easily expose the youth academy to semi-pro football at Central Coast Lightning, and in time align the 22 local clubs with the development pathway straight into the famous yellow colours.
This may be a longer term view, but in theory the Central Coasts bubble-like nature will make it easier for the Mariners to gain cooperation from the grassroots level, improve the standard of play, and start producing quality home-grown players than in any other A-League franchise.
For now, we have players such as John Hutchinson and Adam Kwasnik to lead the charge until the next decade. Its visible at games that these guys would bleed for the club, and they are the right age to become real clubmen over the next few years. Many of the other clubs have a higher proportion of youngsters on their way overseas or veterans on their way into retirement, leaving them in a state of perpetual change and consistent inconsistency.
For the Mariners, with the right people in charge, and Lawrie at the helm, it will be steady as she goes. A steady flow of trophies, that is.
This was a huge achievement for the club and one that outweighs Grand Final success in the eyes of many fans I speak with. Consistency over 21 weeks shines brighter than one frantic month of finals football.
Grabbing first place also secures a spot in the 2009 AFC Champions League. Playing the best of the best from Asia is what every fan, player and coach is really after and having already earned this right, we can cruise through the finals with less pressure than the other teams. We can simply celebrate our moment in the spotlight.
Whatever happens in the rest of the finals, the fans will be looking forward to next season with great anticipation. Of the teams who have enjoyed Premiership and Championship success so far, being Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne and the Mariners, I believe its us who stand the best chance of backing up our fantastic season with another two or three that are equally as good.
Adelaide United, who finished in the top two in the first two A-League seasons, benefited from older players who were very consistent. They failed in both finals series, and now their squad has broken up, they missed the four.
Sydney FC have also relied on older players to make the finals every year, and win the Grand Final in the first year, but their instability on and off the field has stopped them from delivering genuine sustained success.
Then there is Melbourne Victory, who appear to be a one-hit wonder after falling from the lofty perch they created for themselves last year.
Back on Premiership Coast, there is a dynasty in the making. We have the most important piece of the puzzle intact: Lawrie McKinna. He is a manager who understands the game in this country and what the Mariners need to do to succeed. He could replicate Sir Alex Ferguson of Manchester United who has been at that club for 21 years, continually planning a year or two ahead to ensure ongoing glory.
We have a club who shares that philosophy. The backroom staff have carefully built the grassroots support since day one and the bumper attendances at Bluetongue are the proof in the pudding.
The club is also a step or three ahead of the pack in terms of setting up our youth academy. Such is the insular state of football on the Central Coast, the Mariners can quite easily expose the youth academy to semi-pro football at Central Coast Lightning, and in time align the 22 local clubs with the development pathway straight into the famous yellow colours.
This may be a longer term view, but in theory the Central Coasts bubble-like nature will make it easier for the Mariners to gain cooperation from the grassroots level, improve the standard of play, and start producing quality home-grown players than in any other A-League franchise.
For now, we have players such as John Hutchinson and Adam Kwasnik to lead the charge until the next decade. Its visible at games that these guys would bleed for the club, and they are the right age to become real clubmen over the next few years. Many of the other clubs have a higher proportion of youngsters on their way overseas or veterans on their way into retirement, leaving them in a state of perpetual change and consistent inconsistency.
For the Mariners, with the right people in charge, and Lawrie at the helm, it will be steady as she goes. A steady flow of trophies, that is.
