Jackson eyes success as Central Coast move into pole position
Sports
Jackson eyes success as Central Coast move into pole position
(Reuters) - Central Coast Mariners coach Mark Jackson is confident his team can continue to challenge on multiple fronts after Mikael Doka's injury time winner against Wellington Phoenix took the Gosford-based side top of the A-League standings.
Doka struck in the 91st minute of Saturday's clash at Central Coast Stadium to move the Mariners ahead of Wellington due to their greater number of wins this season and keep the club on track for a hat-trick of titles.
Finishing first in the standings would earn Mariners a third A-League Premiership title while also securing home field advantage in the end of season playoffs as Central Coast aim to defend the A-League Championship they won last year.
And with the club due to face Kyrgyzstan's Abdysh-Ata Kant over two legs in the inter-zone playoff final of the Asian Football Confederation's second tier continental competition, the AFC Cup, the demands are mounting on Jackson and his team.
"We've got a group of players who never say die, who stick together, keep pushing, keep wanting to win games," said Jackson, whose side also defeated Melbourne City in midweek with an injury time winner.
"We want to achieve much more. We know we can push on and always improve and we'll strive to do that. That's an important game for us today.
"This group of players have had to contend with a lot with the AFC Cup, and we've got that coming again. So again we look forward to that and that challenge."
Mariners climbed above Wellington with three games left in the regular season due to their win in the clash between the league's top two sides.
Angel Torres put Central Coast ahead with a 61st minute diving header before Ben Old's close range strike in the 78th minute looked set to earn Wellington a point.
But Doka, who had earlier hit the post with a free kick, bent in a left-foot shot from the edge of the area to beat Alex Paulsen a minute into injury time.
