MEN’S PREVIEW: MANLY UNITED v CENTRAL COAST MARINERS

The Manly United Men’s 1st Grade team is back at home on Saturday night! Our next opponent is Central Coast Mariners, and we know that a win will take us above the Mariners on the table.

Central Coast Mariners were promoted to NPL NSW Men’s after winning the 2022 League One Men’s Premiership. They currently sit in 12th place with the same number of points and the same goal difference as Manly, so we can expect a close contest on Saturday. The Mariners are coached by former Socceroo Abbas Saad, and midfielder Lachlan Bayliss is their top scorer with five goals for the campaign – he is a player that our defence will need to keep an eye on come Saturday night.

Manly have a short turnaround following a tough Australia Cup game on Tuesday night, one in which we went to extra time before losing 4-3 to Mount Druitt Town Rangers. There are positives from the game, as youngsters Hunter Elliot and Stefan Visscher found the back of the net, while Bruno Mendes also put his name on the scoresheet.

As we look to return to winning ways, Alen Aganovic will be key and he put in a typically solid defensive performance during last weekend’s game against Western Sydney Wanderers. Harry McCarthy and Jack Greenwood are familiar with Saturday’s opponents after spending time with the Mariners Academy – those two will be keen to make an impression against their former club.

The Manly U20 team are currently in sixth place but could move as high as fourth with victory on Saturday. Plenty of U20s players received game time with the 1st Grade team during Tuesday night’s Australia Cup game, and that experience will put them in a good position for the upcoming fixtures.

If you can’t get to the ground for our Men’s 1st Grade clash, tune in on NPL.TV .

Manly United v Central Coast Mariners

Saturday 6 May, 7:15pm (U20s kickoff at 5pm)

Cromer Park