Central Coast Mariners are the A-League champions with a Leeds United look and feel about them

The Central Coast Mariners lost their first four matches of the 2023/24 A-League season, propping up the early table as pressure built on new head coach Mark Jackson.

Expectations were high as the Englishman, known for his fluid, high-energy, attacking football, was tasked with keeping the defending champions competitive after high-profile departures.

He cut his teeth in a player-manager role at Farsley Celtic, which came at the tail end of a career which saw him make 136 appearances for Scunthorpe United.

Former club Leeds United soon came calling, as Jackson rose through the ranks of the club's academy, eventually landing the Under 23’s job as he replaced Carlos Corberan.

When the Mariners fell 2-1 to Brisbane Roar on matchday four, three sides leapfrogged them in the betting to make Jackson’s side sixth favourites in a 12-horse race.

His struggles to adapt to Australian football, and of course his players to his stylistic demands, came three months after he was sacked by MK Dons for winning six of 25.

Such a run of results must have left him feeling far from home, but familiar faces in the form of Andres Clavijo, Marcelo Bielsa’s analyst and translator, and Danny Schofield, whom he knew from Leeds, were his right-hand men.

Clavijo’s ability as a football analyst was often overlooked as he became known as Marcelo Bielsa's translator. Beyond that, he'd spend hours with players, touching on the finer points of El Loco's gameplan.

His crucial insights and Jackson’s style would later help them beat Sydney FC’s problematic high press en route to the Grand Final.

Things finally clicked in a 3-1 win against Newcastle on matchday five and by the time February rolled around, the Mariners were unbeaten in 12.

Plan A then failed spectacularly as they collapsed to trail Sydney 3-0 inside 20 minutes the following week, second to every ball and failing to cope with the pressure.

But reinforcements had arrived in the January transfer window, including another with ties to Leeds United, to keep the squad moving in the right direction.

Harrogate-born Ryan Edmondson linked up with his former coach in the January transfer window, scoring four goals in 15 matches.

Whilst he wasn’t prolific, his physical presence gave Jackson the perfect plan B, and the Mariners responded by winning the next three matches 1-0 as they found other ways to win.

And two of his goals just so happened to be crucial ones in the A-League champions season.

Trailing with seconds to go in the Grand Final, Edmondson popped up amid a crowd on the edge of the box to slam the ball home and take the game to extra time.

 

 

 

They took the lead shortly after but with wave after wave of Melbourne pressure coming their way, the former Leeds striker latched onto a long ball, cut inside and calmly curved it past the keeper to seal back-to-back A-League titles.

Possession-based football is hardly a novel idea, but fewer sides embrace patience when playing out from the back in the A-League. Jackson's side did it well at times as his style became more apparent as the season progressed.

There is a fifth and final link to Leeds United, among all this, even if he’s yet to kick a ball.

Under-21 prospect Alfie McCalmont, who moved to Carlisle permanently on the back of a loan spell, has joined the Mariners on a long-term contract pending visa approval.

So, Leeds fans, those long, hard Saturday mornings that are reserved for an impending sense of doom, could be better spent watching Jacko ball on TNT.

Central Coast will begin their A-League title defence in October with fixtures due to be announced in August.