Melbourne City is just 90 minutes away from securing a spot in the 2025 Ninja A-League Grand Final, with everything to play for in Sunday’s second leg against Central Coast Mariners at the ctrl:cyber Pitch.
After a tightly contested first leg in Gosford ended in a 2-2 draw, the tie is finely poised ahead of this weekend’s decider in Melbourne. With a place in the Grand Final on the line, it promises to be an unmissable contest.
ONE LEG DOWN, ONE TO GO
Last weekend’s opening leg offered no separation between the sides, with both teams taking turns in the lead before settling for a share of the spoils.
The Mariners struck first in the 20th minute through Brooke Nunn, but Leticia McKenna’s thunderous free kick less than 10 minutes later drew City level.
Bryleeh Henry then completed the turnaround with a classy finish in the 35th minute, sending City into half-time with the lead.
However, Nunn wasn’t done yet and equalised early in the second half with her second goal of the day, setting the stage for a cagey finish. With few clear chances late, the 2-2 scoreline set up a massive return leg in Melbourne.
REINFORCEMENTS ARRIVE
There would’ve been plenty of surprised City fans back home when team news dropped on Saturday afternoon, with both Holly McNamara and Lourdes Bosch absent from the starting XI.
McNamara, the league’s Golden Boot winner, was eased back via a second-half cameo due to a minor training niggle, while Bosch remained in Melbourne as a precaution due to soreness.
There’s better news ahead of Sunday’s clash, with both players now back in the mix for selection in the starting lineup.
McNamara has trained strongly during the week and is pushing to return to the XI, while Bosch has been cleared of any serious injury and will come under starting consideration.
City will also be buoyed by the return of Mariana Speckmaier, who has been named in the extended squad.
The Venezuelan international is in line for her first appearance since March after recovering from an ankle injury.
Whether starting or off the bench, Speckmaier’s firepower could prove decisive in a match of this magnitude.
SOMETHING HAS TO GIVE
It was discussed last week, and it remains true heading into the second leg – Central Coast are the only team we’re yet to defeat this season.
We’ve now met three times throughout this campaign, with every contest ending in a draw; two via 2-2 scorelines and one 0-0 stalemate.
The other key stat is more in our favour; we’ve never lost to the Mariners, having only met on two other occasions. Both came last season, with one being a City win and the other… yet another draw.
Well, the time has now come for one of those statistics to finally be broken. Should we once again end locked away, this time around, we’ll have extra time and penalties if required to decide who books their place in the Grand Final.
Fixture Details
Ninja A-League: Semi-Final Second Leg
Melbourne City FC v Central Coast Mariners
Sunday 11 May, 2:00 pm KO
ctrl:cyber Pitch
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