FOOTBALL
The Central Coast Mariners suffered a single, late goal defeat for the third game in a row against Melbourne Victory in the A-League on Saturday evening, February 19.
The travelling Mariners performed well and stuck to their game plan for most of their first game back at AAMI Park since their recent FFA Final loss at the Melbourne venue.
They controlled possession, had a reliable defensive structure and strong midfield passing play.
The visitors were unable to convert shots on goal to shots on target even with the ball at the feet of a composed striker.
Victory had slight more chances and shots on target but the Mariners performed well in the 90 minutes to prevent their hosts from taking the lead.
In the 62nd minute, Mariners goalkeeper, Mark Birighitti successfully defended a Victory free-kick taken in a similar position to where they had scored the opening goal in the FFA Final two weeks earlier.
Victory’s Jason Davidson attempted to repeat his FFA success but, this time, Birighitti covered the right side of his net to marginalise the angle and prompt the shot wide.
With only injury time left to play, a deadlocked score presumed a draw until Nishan Velupillay’s header brought the hosts in front for an end 1-0 win.
The loss is a hard pill for the Mariners who remained in Melbourne ahead of their Tuesday night fixture at AAMI Park against Melbourne City.
Haakon Barry