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North Queensland Fury 1–5 Central Coast Mariners: Finishing The Difference As Mariners Put Five Past Furious North Queensland
Despite a hard-fought game across the park, Lawrie McKinna’s men managed to score a record victory over Ian Ferguson’s struggling Fury.
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Nov 21, 2009 9:33:43 AM
The Central Coast Mariners have inexplicably thrashed league minnows North Queensland Fury in front of over 7,000 fans at Dairy Farmer’s Stadium.
Statistics told a tale very different to that of the scoreboard. With six more attempts, one more attempt on goal, two attempts hitting the woodwork, four more corners and 54% of possession, North
Queensland could easily feel justified in thinking they could have won, let alone drew, their crucial clash with their New South Welsh rivals.
The Mariners on the other hand were simply clinical, each goal a result of a well-drilled forward line and expert support play.
A nice movement down the right flank on three minutes saw diminutive wing-back Chris Tadrosse sky a shot in front of goal following a clever
North Queensland flaunted their attacking intentions from the start following up from their inspiring performance against Melbourne Victory.
The next ten minutes were played with high intensity, both sides trying to assert their physical dominance over the other.
On 21 minutes North Queensland put together 6 straight passes through the midfield for 19-year-old Osama Malik to have his close-range shot denied by an unbelievable Danny Vukovic save.
Just a minute later it was the visitors who capitalised on sloppy defence to get into an early lead.
Predrag Bojic managed to control a long ball into the area from an out-of-touch Dean Heffernan, slowing the ball enough to cleanly snap a volley to the far post of Fury keeper Paul Henderson.
The goal is 25-year-old Bojic’s second of the season, gifting the Mariners an undeserved lead against the run of play.
The game remained uneventful until 35 minutes when Central Coast forward Adam Kwasnik was fouled by Malik 25 yards out from the Fury line. After a delayed wall set-up, a well-rehearsed free kick gave former Socceroo Nik Mrdja a chance to unleash a low, powerful shot that rocketed into the North Queensland netting.
The goal was Mrdja’s second in two games, and Kwasnik almost added a third to the Mariners’ total just twenty seconds after kickoff with his shot from just inside the box cracking Henderson’s near post.
Kwasnik continued his assault on the home side with a superb cross on 39 minutes, English-born Nicky Travis’ header glancing wide by less than a metre. The tension was felt by the crowd at this point, a two goal difference going into half-time was not ideal as the Fury found themselves yet failing to secure the first goal of the match.
The last play of the first half demonstrated just how things were going against North Queensland, a great cross from young Socceroo David Williams met pocket-rocket Fred Agius who volleyed the ball to a waiting Robbie Fowler at point-blank range.
The former Liverpool hitman drove the ball with his left foot, only for it to rebound against the crossbar.
Fury playmaker Malik sent David Williams free into the Mariners’ area for the first real chance of the second half on 47 minutes. Williams had time to line up the shot, but Vukovic was too good and miraculously managed to deflect the ball back into play.
Former Australian Under-23 representative Vukovic played a testament to his goalkeeping record this season, statistically the best in the league.
North Queensland substitute Dyron Daal had a chance to post one back for the home side on 56 minutes with a thunderous strike on goal that rattled the crossbar from 30 yards out. The attempt was the 12th on goal from the home side compared to 6th from the Central Coast, but luck was not on the Fury’s side.
Central Coast defied the run of play for the third time of the match when Nik Mrdja was lethal yet again on 59 minutes with ample space at the edge of the box, allowing for plenty of time to line up another powerful shot along the ground. An outstretched and furious Henderson had little chance of stopping it.
Just two minutes later, the visiting side turned the scoreline into an embarrassment for North Queensland when substitute Ahmed Elrich found himself on the end of a clever run of quick passes through the midfield.
A Bojic header into the centre was met by a cool finish on the volley from former Socceroo Elrich, who Mariners coach Lawrie McKinna had brought on just a minute before.
After continually pushing for some sort of consolation, a clever first-time finish from former Blackburn-trainee Rostyn Griffiths turned a scramble just outside the box into the Fury’s first for the evening and his second for the season.
After getting a goal back, North Queensland lifted their intensity and began pushing through-balls and taking long-range attempts. Fury coach Ian Ferguson pushed all defenders up the pitch in search for a glimmer of hope.
Central Coast vice-captain John Hutchinson broke a deadlock of inaction on 81 minutes after chasing an Andrew Clark long ball to drill a stunning finish across goal from 20 yards to give the Mariners an incredible 5-1 lead against a solid Fury team.
The last 10 minutes of the match were played in subtlety, neither side showing the spirit that was prominent throughout the match. The full-time whistle was blown with players admirably congratulating one another on a night of quality football, though an air of disappointment was felt in the home camp due to the scoreboard clearly not reflecting the competitiveness of the contest.
The Central Coast Mariners marked their greatest ever A-League victory, cementing themselves within the crucial top four spots whilst leaving the Fury, who could have hopped to sixth place had they won, at the bottom of the table and looking close to out of finals contention.
Jason Cohn, Goal.com
Get all the Australian football coverage you need on the Goal.com Australia homepage!
Statistics told a tale very different to that of the scoreboard. With six more attempts, one more attempt on goal, two attempts hitting the woodwork, four more corners and 54% of possession, North
Queensland could easily feel justified in thinking they could have won, let alone drew, their crucial clash with their New South Welsh rivals.
The Mariners on the other hand were simply clinical, each goal a result of a well-drilled forward line and expert support play.
A nice movement down the right flank on three minutes saw diminutive wing-back Chris Tadrosse sky a shot in front of goal following a clever
North Queensland flaunted their attacking intentions from the start following up from their inspiring performance against Melbourne Victory.
The next ten minutes were played with high intensity, both sides trying to assert their physical dominance over the other.
On 21 minutes North Queensland put together 6 straight passes through the midfield for 19-year-old Osama Malik to have his close-range shot denied by an unbelievable Danny Vukovic save.
Just a minute later it was the visitors who capitalised on sloppy defence to get into an early lead.
Predrag Bojic managed to control a long ball into the area from an out-of-touch Dean Heffernan, slowing the ball enough to cleanly snap a volley to the far post of Fury keeper Paul Henderson.
The goal is 25-year-old Bojic’s second of the season, gifting the Mariners an undeserved lead against the run of play.
The game remained uneventful until 35 minutes when Central Coast forward Adam Kwasnik was fouled by Malik 25 yards out from the Fury line. After a delayed wall set-up, a well-rehearsed free kick gave former Socceroo Nik Mrdja a chance to unleash a low, powerful shot that rocketed into the North Queensland netting.
The goal was Mrdja’s second in two games, and Kwasnik almost added a third to the Mariners’ total just twenty seconds after kickoff with his shot from just inside the box cracking Henderson’s near post.
Kwasnik continued his assault on the home side with a superb cross on 39 minutes, English-born Nicky Travis’ header glancing wide by less than a metre. The tension was felt by the crowd at this point, a two goal difference going into half-time was not ideal as the Fury found themselves yet failing to secure the first goal of the match.
The last play of the first half demonstrated just how things were going against North Queensland, a great cross from young Socceroo David Williams met pocket-rocket Fred Agius who volleyed the ball to a waiting Robbie Fowler at point-blank range.
The former Liverpool hitman drove the ball with his left foot, only for it to rebound against the crossbar.
Fury playmaker Malik sent David Williams free into the Mariners’ area for the first real chance of the second half on 47 minutes. Williams had time to line up the shot, but Vukovic was too good and miraculously managed to deflect the ball back into play.
Former Australian Under-23 representative Vukovic played a testament to his goalkeeping record this season, statistically the best in the league.
North Queensland substitute Dyron Daal had a chance to post one back for the home side on 56 minutes with a thunderous strike on goal that rattled the crossbar from 30 yards out. The attempt was the 12th on goal from the home side compared to 6th from the Central Coast, but luck was not on the Fury’s side.
Central Coast defied the run of play for the third time of the match when Nik Mrdja was lethal yet again on 59 minutes with ample space at the edge of the box, allowing for plenty of time to line up another powerful shot along the ground. An outstretched and furious Henderson had little chance of stopping it.
Just two minutes later, the visiting side turned the scoreline into an embarrassment for North Queensland when substitute Ahmed Elrich found himself on the end of a clever run of quick passes through the midfield.
A Bojic header into the centre was met by a cool finish on the volley from former Socceroo Elrich, who Mariners coach Lawrie McKinna had brought on just a minute before.
After continually pushing for some sort of consolation, a clever first-time finish from former Blackburn-trainee Rostyn Griffiths turned a scramble just outside the box into the Fury’s first for the evening and his second for the season.
After getting a goal back, North Queensland lifted their intensity and began pushing through-balls and taking long-range attempts. Fury coach Ian Ferguson pushed all defenders up the pitch in search for a glimmer of hope.
Central Coast vice-captain John Hutchinson broke a deadlock of inaction on 81 minutes after chasing an Andrew Clark long ball to drill a stunning finish across goal from 20 yards to give the Mariners an incredible 5-1 lead against a solid Fury team.
The last 10 minutes of the match were played in subtlety, neither side showing the spirit that was prominent throughout the match. The full-time whistle was blown with players admirably congratulating one another on a night of quality football, though an air of disappointment was felt in the home camp due to the scoreboard clearly not reflecting the competitiveness of the contest.
The Central Coast Mariners marked their greatest ever A-League victory, cementing themselves within the crucial top four spots whilst leaving the Fury, who could have hopped to sixth place had they won, at the bottom of the table and looking close to out of finals contention.
Jason Cohn, Goal.com
Get all the Australian football coverage you need on the Goal.com Australia homepage!
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| Open an account with Sportingbet today and get up to £100 in free bets! |
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| Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200 |
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