The first leg of the Top 4 was an entertaining affair, with both sides having plenty of chances to score. Although Adelaide United opened the scoring early on, the Mid Coast Mariners scored twice and won 2-1.
A-League, led by Carl Watt, is going to play offense instead of defense as usual, hoping to score more goals, but I think this is also the main reason for their unstable performance in defense. In the first half of the game alone, the Central Coast Mariners scored two goals, and in the first half of the game, the Mariners had a shot that hit the goal post, and A-League goalkeeper Joe Goss also made a great save.
Once again, I expect League to start the game on the front foot. As always, Kiki Gwynne will be the driving force of the team, but I think my ex-teammate Clough will step up to the plate in this one. If he can control the ball in the midfield, he has the ability to make a positive impact on the team, and I'm hoping he can get his first major tournament win of his career.
If the A-League wants to make it to the finals, they need to improve their defense performance, especially when they will face the Mariners' Jackson Gammings in this match. He has scored 17 goals this season and is definitely one of the best scorers in the A-League, while his frontline partner, Marco Durio, has also scored 5 goals in his last 8 games and is in great form.
However, I think A-League's Ilan Kwanta has the ability to come in as a backup and rewrite the game. The 17 year old youngster has not started a game this season, but he has always been able to make a big impact with his speed, strength and ability to take control of the game by coming in as a back-up, and I believe that will be the case again this time around.
