Central Coast Mariners again defied expectations last year by finishing in the top six and reaching the final of the FFA (now Australia) Cup. The club also continued to bring through a fine crop of talented youngsters. Can the A-League’s smallest club continue to punch above their weight? Simon Hill chatted to Head Coach, Nick Montgomery, about their prospects ahead of the coming campaign…
SH: Nick, safe to say your first season in charge went quite well – a Cup Final, finals football; did it go better than you expected?
NM: Not really, I’m always confident – in fact, I think if some of the boys had believed like I did in the early part of the season, we could have done even better. That’s not arrogance, it’s self-belief. I know I can put a team out that is hard to beat, and the way I want to play is exciting. We proved we are hard to break down and that we can score goals. I was always confident we could have a strong season.
SH: You made it a priority to give youth its head – but I guess the double-edged sword with that is that you lose players, like Lewis Miller, like Kye Rowles, like Garang Kuol…are you the victims of your own success?
NM: It’s no secret the club is run on the lowest budget, and that we are the smallest club. Everyone wants the Mariners to stay in Gosford, and so it has to be sustainable – we have to develop players to sell them. That hasn’t changed with the new owner. It’s the same directive, because it’s important for the club.
Our Academy is the foundation – you can see that with the stats that show us being the top club for players that come through the academy to play in the first team. But we also have to compete – if you don’t compete, then the players don’t have much value. That’s my job, and I love that challenge to bring young players through who I think can make it, and mix them with experienced visa players.
The recruitment is key – I spent a couple of years with the Academy, and we set up a scouting department around the country to send the best young players from around Australia. When those players reach the first team, that helps us with recruitment. It’s never easy, but it’s finding the right balance. We want to push through a couple every year, and that requires a lot of hard work.
SH: One of those experienced players from last year - Marco Urena – has moved on. Would you have liked to have kept him, and do you feel you have good options in attack this season?
NM: To be honest, Marco struggled in the first half of his first season. Alou Kuol burst on to the scene and helped the club get momentum. When he got sold, Marco settled down, got used to the league – and last year he scored more goals than he has done in his whole career. That was testament to the way we played.
He’s moved on, but we have other good players. Moresche had started to show how good he was before he got his injury. We’ve bought in Paul Ayongo from Portugal, and Michael Ruhs, a powerful quick striker who can cause a lot of damage.
Jason Cummings of course we got in January – we don’t get him here if he hasn’t made mistakes and if his career is where it should be. He should really be in the Premiership or Championship. But we have reinvented him and helped him achieve his potential. That’s a real strength of our club.
SH: One of your other new signings is Danny Vukovic, who replaces Mark Birighitti – Danny didn’t play a lot last season. What sort of shape is he in?
NM: Danny is a fantastic pro. I played against him a long time ago, and everyone spoke so highly of him as a person. That’s important for me – Danny ticked every box. For me it was an unbelievable opportunity to bring in someone of his experience and quality. He’s been a big presence, and the boys love him. He’s got everything you need to lead from the back. We have a young backline – so it’s important we have a voice. He’s a great communicator.
SH: Tell us about Paul Ayongo, Kelechi John and your latest acquisition, Marco Tulio?
NM: Don’t forget we still have Beni N’kololo too – one of the most exciting attacking players in the competition. Paul is in his mid-20’s, played at the top level in Portugal, scores goals – he’s very hard-working. We want to play high energy, high pressing – so he fits perfectly. Marco Tulio can play anywhere across the front line, and he will give us more versatility, and create competition up top. But he will take a bit of time to adapt.
What we lacked last year was depth attacking wise – for most of last season we only had Marco and Moresche until Jason gave us that different dimension. The hardest thing on a small budget is bringing in quality to create that competition. Kelechi John is a Nigerian Under-23 international – he’s been playing in Portugal too. He’s a man mountain, a great defender, but very good on the ball. Losing Kye (Rowles) was a blow, but Kelechi has massive potential – he’s very young, but he is experienced already.
SH: Will the change in personnel mean a change in playing style or formation?
NM: We will see the same Mariners. We want to take the game to the opposition. We want to score goals, but also to work hard and ensure we are hard to play against. We are quite flexible – we can adapt depending upon the opposition or the situation of the game. We want to continue to be the team no-one wants to play.
SH: You begin with the F3 derby – then Wellington and Perth – how important is it to get points on the board in this mini-season ahead of the break for the World Cup?
NM: We want to win every game of course. I don’t say that arrogantly though. There’s good quality teams in this competition – the others have recruited well too, and they have probably spent more money than us. It’s a strange season this time around with the early break. So, it’s important to get points on the board to build momentum - you want a solid foundation.
SH: I have to ask you about the Garang Kuol situation – are you hopeful of keeping him in the face of all the European interest swirling around him?
NM: Just before I address that, I want to say that when I took over, we didn’t have any players in the national teams, and I found that hard to understand, because the Academy had been very successful. I expressed that to the FA and the coaches involved. To push these boys in the first team has helped though – Garang hadn’t appeared for any junior national team, and now he’s in the Socceroos, so that is the vindication.
It’s fantastic to have both him and Jason in there. I told Jason that if he worked hard, there was that opportunity, perhaps to go to the World Cup. He now has that chance. Garang hasn’t started a league game for us yet – but off the bench he has been very exciting.
There has been a lot of interest in him since the Barca game – some very far-fetched, others some truth (in the stories). There has been contact from some big clubs around the world, and that’s now up to him, as he has turned 18. His representative situation is down to him and his family. He can’t go anywhere until January, so who knows what will happen?
*Kuol has since signed for Newcastle United but will remain with the Mariners until at least January
SH: You’ve had a very busy pre-season - beating Melbourne City twice, along with Wellington and Macarthur…was that schedule pre-planned, and are we all under-estimating the Mariners again this season?
NM: It’s a long pre-season, and it’s a balancing act, because you can pick up injuries. But we needed to get the team ready, and the players need minutes in their legs…because we play less games than overseas leagues. But you don’t get any points in pre-season. It doesn’t matter who you beat if you don’t repeat it during the season.
But winning does help build belief and that successful mentality. If people want to underestimate us because of the low budget and visa players they haven’t heard of before, that’s fine – we have to do it differently. I love finding those players. By the end of last season we had interest around the world for Beni N’kololo for example, but thankfully he has decided to stay with us.
SH: How have things changed under Richard Peil on a day-to-day basis?
A: I love Mike Charlesworth – he has had a lot of stick, but his money saved the club from extinction. But he lives in England, he is busy. Richard is on the ground, he wants to be involved, and he is passionate about football. He has invested in resources at the training ground, things like recovery ice baths that most teams take for granted. We didn’t have that.
I think with his background in health and fitness, he pulled a few strings. So, we now have the resources and equipment to build better athletes. If I need something, I know I can pick up the phone and ask him – most times he says yes, because I only ask for the bare minimum for a professional team.
SH: How do you view the A-League (Men’s) overall – where are we at as a competition?
NM: I think the league is in a good place. The ownership swap-over happened at a tough time during Covid. We saw the quality in the league drop a bit. The clubs couldn’t spend the money they once did, but I think they are back on their feet now…the likes of Nani and some of the other visa players.
We are trying to grow the league and get the fans back. But the A-League is underestimated. You can see Kye Rowles - for example – who has gone to the Scottish Premier League and been an instant hit. That speaks volume for the quality of the league here. But we need more fans in the stadiums. The new SFS, AAMI Park, Central Coast Stadium – we have fantastic stadiums – if they are full, it helps build the product.
SH: Finally, is this the year the 10-year wait for a trophy for the Mariners ends?
NM: I’d like to think so. I was a player when we won the title in 2013. This is the first year I have had the challenge of building the staff and squad that I want. We need to exceed expectations – so who knows where we will end up? We will give everything for the fans and the community on the Central Coast to try and make it happen.
See what all the other A-League Men's coaches have to say ahead of the 2022/23 season
