A late winner for substitute Brendan Santalab against the Mariners has put the Wanderers back to the top of the A-League.
The clash of top & bottom looked to be a simple three points for the Wanderers, and the first half seemed to prove the theory. A dominant Wanderers outfit pressed and harried the Mariners defence, and when in possession, where completely untroubled by the youthful Central Coast squad. Just 11 minutes into the game the high press forced a turnover and a goal.
New Zealand international Storm Roux, being harried by Dario Vidosic & Mitch Nichols, seemed to be caught in two minds, producing a pass that was neither a backpass to the keeper nor a lateral pass to a defensive team-mate. Mark Bridge, who was playing up front with Federico Piovaccari dropped from the match squad entirely, gleefully pounced on the poor pass before firing through the legs of Paul Izzo to open the scoring.
Western Sydney should have gone into the half-time break up several goals, but as has been the case in recent weeks, the lack of a killer final pass stifled their attacking thrusts.
Central Coast came back strongly in the second half, gradually building up a momentum that reached a peak with the introduce of their marquee star, bringing Luis Garcia out of retirement off the bench. His ball down the left flank of the Mariners was latched onto by Mitch Austin, who turned a cross into the path of Josh Bingham, Andrew Redmayne had little time to react, and he spilled the ball out in front to the benefit of Fabio Ferreria who bundled the ball home.
Western Sydney regained their composure, reasserting dominance that was only kept at bay by desperate defending and tactical fouling from the home side. Almost inevitably it cost the Mariners their hope of winning the match. Their captain Nick Montgomery will serve his second suspension of the campaign, after his horribly mistimed lunging tackle that could have snapped Golgol Mebrahtu's shin. The straight red set the Mariners on the back foot for the remainder of the match.
All three of the Wanderers substitutes combined with Mitch Nichols to force the winner in the 87th minute. Mebrahtu & Mitch Nichols dogged pressing stole the ball from Michael Neil, Kearyn Baccus fired a cross into the area, Izzo spilled the ball right to the feet of Santalab and he fired the ball into the roof of the net, although for a moment it looked like it might have gone over the bar.
The win was well deserved for a dominant Wanderers, although once again there will be questions about their finishing and passing decisions in the final third. Facing Melbourne City next week will be a very tough test, and despite the win, they might not be at the top of the table pending the Melbourne Victory vs Sydney FC match this coming Tuesday.
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