AFC Cup
With the AFC Cup making way for a revamped continental club competition structure, Mariners were the ones standing tall at the end of a challenging campaign.
Having topped Group G ahead of Malaysia's Terengganu FC, Mariners were in top form in their ASEAN Zonal semi-final against Cambodia's Phnom Penh Crown FC, with the Australian champions cruising to a 4-0 win.
Up next in the ASEAN Zonal final were Australian rivals Macarthur FC and both sides served up a thriller.
#AFCCup - Final | Asean Zone | Macarthur FC (AUS) 2 - 3 Central Coast Mariners (AUS)
The tight contest burst into life in the 81st minute with Angel Torres putting Central Coast Mariners ahead but Macarthur's Ulises Davilla forced the game into extra-time with his 88th minute equaliser.
Lachlan Rose then edged Macarthur FC ahead in the 92nd minute, only for Mikael Doka to equalise just before the first period of extra-time ended.
Ronald Barcellos then sent Central Coast Mariners into rapturous celebrations with the winning goal just seconds before the final whistle was blown.
#AFCCup - Inter-Zone SF: Central C. Mariners (AUS) 4 - 0 Odisha FC (IND)
The hard-fought win took Mariners into an Inter-Zone semi-final against India's Odisha FC.
It was a case of job done in the first leg with a Mikael Doka brace and one goal each from Storm Roux and Ronald Barcellos giving Mariners a healthy 4-0 lead, with the return fixture ending in a goalless stalemate.
#AFCCup - Inter-Zone Final (1st Leg) | FC Abdysh-Ata (KGZ) 1 - 1 Central Coast Mariners (AUS)
The Inter-Zone final was a much tougher affair with Kyrgyz Republic's FC Abdysh-Ata determined to maximise home ground advantage in the first leg.
Instead, it was Mariners who opened the scoring through Brian Kaltak in the 81st minute.
A desperate Abdysh-Ata threw bodies forward in search of the equaliser and were rewarded for their efforts with Magamed Uzdenov netting in the third minute of second-half added time.
#AFCCup - Inter-zone Final (2nd Leg) | Central Coast Mariners (AUS) 3 - 0 FC Abdysh-Ata (KGZ)
The return leg was tantalisingly poised till the 76th minute when Miguel Di Pizio broke the deadlock for Mariners.
Mikael Doka dashed Abdysh-Ata's hopes of a fightback with his 86th minute strike and Di Pizio capped their late blitz with his second goal in the first minute of added time as Mariners advanced to the final.
#AFCCup - Final | Al Ahed (LBN) 0 - 1 Central Coast Mariners (AUS)
The final against an Al Ahed FC side seeking a second AFC Cup title was played in Muscat.
After a cagey start typical of a continental final, 2019 champions Al Ahed had the first sight of goal after 25 minutes. A well-worked string of passes down the left side opened space for Mohammed Al Hallak and the Syrian playmaker whipped a cross for Lee Erwin who rose highest to head it towards the bottom corner, only to be denied by a fine diving save from Danny Vukovic.
The second half carried on in the same rhythm, with Edmondson’s drilled effort at the hour mark the only chance of the early proceedings.
Centre-back Khalil Khamis had to put all his defensive acumen into action to deny the Mariners back-to-back chances with 10 minutes left. The 29-year-old threw his body in the face of Nesbit’s initial shot after Storm Roux had advanced down the right and crossed into the box. Khamis showed exceptional quick reflexes and bravery to dive in the face of the rebound from Ronald Barcellos.
At the other end of the pitch, Hasan Srour beat his marker and fired towards goal, but his effort from inside the box struck the side netting.
The deadlock was finally broken in the 84th minute thanks to Alou Kuol. The 22-year-old had come off the bench 20 minutes earlier, replacing Edmondson and made the required impact. He latched onto a fine through ball from Barcellos, hitting it low through the legs of goalkeeper Matar to bag what proved to be the winner for the Mariners.
Mariners' defender Mikael Doka was named the Most Valuable Player while his former teammate Marco Tulio Lemos won the Top Scorer award, having netted eight goals before leaving the club for Japanese side Kyoto Sanga FC.
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