A scintillating match in Geelong ended all square as Melbourne fought their way back from three goals down to earn a point ‘away’ to Central Coast.
Central Coast Mariners flew out of the blocks and stunned the Geelong crowd as they went 1-0 up through a Harry Ascroft header in the 12th minute. They then sat back and were able to withstand the Victory attacks before Josh Bingham was put through to double the Mariners lead on the 30th minute mark. Only minutes later Mitch Austin was put clean through and showed fantastic composure to give the Mariners a shock 3-0 lead at the break.
POPULAR ARTICLES
Melbourne Victory mid-season review
Central Coast’s Tony Walmsley aware of Anthony Caceres talks
Should the FFA fix the A-League’s refereeing situation sooner rather than later?
Muscat clearly had some stern words to say to his players and it clearly made an impact. They came out in the second half looking a different team as they managed to start hitting passes they weren’t making in the opening 45.
It took them three separate penalty appeals but in the end Peter Green had no choice but to award Melbourne a spot kick and give them a lifeline.
Besart Berisha stepped up and made no mistake from the spot. Victory continued to press the Mariners defence and in the 66th minute found themselves only a single goal behind after Kosta Barbarouses carved open the Mariners defence and in the end Thompson was on hand to force the ball home.
It looked like the floodgates were going to open for the Victory but the Mariners who were holding on for dear life managed to stem the flow. In the end though the Mariners could not keep them out and in added time Berisha scored a dramatic equaliser.
That would prove to be the last action in a fascinating encounter that will live long in the memory banks.
Game of two halves
The cliche gets thrown around a lot in football but this match just goes to show that it really is a game of two halves. The Mariners who looked to be well on top in the opening 45 minutes and went into the halftime break three goals to the good would have almost thought the job was done. Victory had other ideas as they came out in the second half and scored three goals of their own.
The Mariners had a clear game plan to hit on the counter-attack through the pace of Bingham and Austin, with the Victory had no answers in the opening half. Whether it was the fact that both Austin and Bingham were exasperated from the opening half, both players failed to have a similar impact in the second 45 minutes as Melbourne practically set up camp in the Mariners half.
Mariners counter-attacking football
Having been three goals up the Mariners will feel as though they threw the game away. However, it is not all bad news for the Mariners who are currently rooted to the bottom of the league. They have been struggling both on and off the field this season but this match just goes to show what they are truly capable of.
Walmsley set his team up almost perfectly in the first half as they were able to sit back and handle anything that Victory threw at them. They were then able to utilise the pace and agility of Austin and Bingham and the creativity of Fabio Ferreira as they hit Melbourne on the counter-attack. The combination of Jacob Poscoliero and Ascroft at the back for the Mariners was fantastic in the opening half as they took control of anything that came near them.
In the end though they were only able to play this style for 45 minutes, which is never enough to win you a game of football against powerful opposition, so Walmsley will have to rethink a couple of things going into next week.
Barbarouses the key
Barbarouses was the most influential player for the Victory, causing the Mariners constant headaches. He was involved in all of the attacks in which Melbourne scored, despite not getting his name on the scoresheet.
He continued to make runs in behind the Mariners fullbacks causing them to turn and chase the Kiwi, especially in the second half. At times he was even coming deeper to receive the ball when it wasn’t coming his way and was forcing the play to come down his wing.
Berisha is likely to get all the headlines with his brace but Barbarouses’ work rate and excellent performance did not go unnoticed.
Outside90 Player of the Year
3 – Kosta Barbarouses
2 – Mitch Austin
1 – Besart Berisha
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us onFacebook
