Central Coast Mariners

Central Coast Mariners' bid for a franchise in the Football Federation Australia's new A-League competition was aimed at filling the one spot for a regional team that was designated by the FFA. Media speculation prior to the announcement of the franchises in the new league suggested that the Mariners' bid may be favourable due to its new blood. Backing from former Australian international player and club technical director Alex Tobin, as well as Clean Up Australia personality Ian Kiernan—who would act as inaugural club chairman—also strengthened its proposal. As the only regional bidder, Central Coast was expected to make it into the league by default. Following a reported signed deal with the FFA, the club signed former Northern Spirit coach Lawrie McKinna as manager and Ian Ferguson, a former Rangers and Northern Spirit player, as coach. To aid the FFA's goals of building the profile of the sport, the Mariners created formal links with local state league team Central Coast United. On 1 November 2004, after much expectation, the club was announced as one of eight teams to become part of FFA's domestic competition, the A-League. The decision made Central Coast Mariners the first Gosford-based professional sports team to play in a national competition.

At the time of the formation of the new league in 2004, the club was owned by Spirits Sports and Leisure Group. The club announced its search for a star player under the league's allowance for one star player outside of the $1.5 million salary cap, insisting that the player should not look at the position as a retirement fund. Coach Lawrie McKinna sought interest from Australia national football team players Ante Milicic and Simon Colosimo, and announced that he may sign more than the three under-20 players required by league rules. Early concerns for the club focussed on concerns over financial stability, but after forming a partnership with technology company Toshiba and a cash injection from local businessman John Singleton, the club's financial worries were eased. McKinna was keen to sign local player Damien Brown of Bateau Bay, formerly of the Newcastle Jets. In a decision which prompted the player to declare that he was "over the moon", Brown became the first player to sign with the club. Club chairman Lyall Gorman was pleased that a local had become a "foundation player" and part of Brown's role would be to assist with selection of younger players from the local area. By early December 2004, the club had created a steady foundation of player signings and began negotiations with former Perth Glory striker Nik Mrdja, signing him later in the month as its star attacker. Mrjda was one of the most prominent players in the last season of the National Soccer League, scoring the final goal to secure Perth Glory's finals win. The club's management was reluctant to sign a star player outside of the $1.5 million salary cap, stipulating that they "would have to contribute on the pitch and get people to come to the ground."

The Mariners' inaugural season was considered a resounding success by most; the team reached the 2006 A-League Grand Final after finishing third during the regular season. Central Coast was defeated by Sydney FC 1–0 in front of a crowd of 41,689—a competition record at the time. The Mariners also won the 2005 Pre-Season Cup, defeating Perth Glory in the final 1–0. Before the 2006–07 A-League season, the Mariners secured the services of then-Australian international Tony Vidmar from NAC Breda for two years. This was the club's first marquee signing, following the lead of Sydney FC (Dwight Yorke) and Adelaide United (Qu Shengqing). Central Coast again reached the grand final in the 2006 Pre-Season Cup, losing to Adelaide United 5–4 on penalties after the score was tied 1–1 after extra time. The Mariners then participated in the 2006–07 A-League season, but was unable to gain a spot in the final series, finishing sixth after the regular season.

Club captain Noel Spencer was released by the Mariners, then signed to participate in the Asian Champions League by Sydney FC after the 2006–07 season, and Alex Wilkinson was appointed the new captain. Only 22 years of age at the time, Wilkinson had played every possible competitive match for the Mariners up to his appointment. In February 2008, Central Coast Mariners signed an arrangement with English Football League Championship side Sheffield United. The partnership was one of several connections the Mariners made with foreign clubs; other partner clubs included Ferencváros of Hungary, Chengdu Blades of China and São Paulo of Brazil. The agreement benefits the club by providing an opportunity for the youth programme and senior side to draw from the roster of Sheffield United through transfers. The teams also formed a property development joint venture, in the hopes that Central Coast could use its share of income to expand and bolster their Mariners Youth Academy.

The 2007–08 season saw Central Coast win its first premiership on goal difference ahead of Newcastle, following a final round that began with Central Coast and three other clubs level on 31 points. The final series began with a 2–0 loss to Newcastle in the first leg of its major semi-final, but the Mariners forced the tie to extra time by holding a 2–0 lead in the second leg after 90 minutes. A 94th-minute goal by Sasho Petrovski, who had scored earlier to level the tie, gave Central Coast a 3–2 win on aggregate, putting the Mariners through to the 2008 A-League Grand Final. In a rematch with Newcastle, the Jets defeated Central Coast 1–0 in the Grand Final, which ended in controversy due to an uncalled handball against Newcastle in Central Coast Mariners penalty box during the closing seconds of the match. If called, the foul would have given Central Coast a penalty kick and a chance to equalise. As Mariners players disputed referee Mark Shield's decision, goalkeeper Danny Vuković struck Shield on the arm, resulting in an immediate sending off and later suspension. Vuković was suspended from both domestic and international competition for nine months, with an additional six-months' suspended ban; the latter period was reduced to three months on appeal. Despite further appeals, the ban was eventually confirmed by FIFA in June, to include banning the young keeper from competing at the 2008 Olympic Games. The ban lasted into October; in response, Central Coast signed former Manchester United and Australian international keeper Mark Bosnich on a seven-week contract.

Before the 2008–09 season, Central Coast was predicted to be among the A-League leaders, but had a run of three losses in a row to end the regular season. Even with the losing streak, the club narrowly qualified for the finals, finishing in fourth, two points ahead of Sydney F.C. and Wellington Phoenix. Central Coast lost 4–1 on aggregate in their minor semi-final against Queensland Roar, ending the team's season.

In February 2010, following the club's 2009–10 season, McKinna chose to move into a new role, becoming Central Coast's Football and Commercial Operations Manager. Socceroos assistant manager Graham Arnold was appointed as the club's new manager, becoming its second manager. In the lead-up to the 2010–11 season, numerous transfers resulted in changes to the club's squad. The Mariners announced the signing of 2005 Under 20s World Cup winner Patricio Pérez of Argentina in June 2010, followed by Dutch defender Patrick Zwaanswijk. In July 2010, it was announced that the Mariners' women's team would not compete in the 2010–11 W-League competition. The club stated that financial reasons were behind the decision, after Football NSW withdrew its funding.

In spite of relatively low expectations in the lead up to the season, the 2010–11 season was more successful for the club than 2009–10; the A-League and youth league teams both finished second in their respective leagues in the regular season. The senior team was then defeated by the premiers, Brisbane Roar, 4–2 on aggregate over two legs in the major semi-final, before defeating Gold Coast United 1–0 in the Preliminary Final to qualify for the 2011 A-League Grand Final against Brisbane. By reaching the Grand Final, the club also qualified for the 2012 AFC Champions League. In a championship match that the A-League's website called "classic", Central Coast was defeated 4–2 in a penalty shootout after leading 2–0 with three minutes remaining in extra time to finish runners-up for the third time.

The 2011–12 season was similarly successful, as the club won the premiership for the second time in its history with 51 points, two more than second-place Brisbane. The club failed to qualify for a second successive Grand Final, though, losing 5–2 on aggregate to Brisbane in the major semi-final and 5–3 on penalties after a 1–1 draw with Perth Glory in the Grand Final Qualifier.

On 21 April 2013, after three losses in Grand Finals, Central Coast won its first A-League title, defeating first-year side Western Sydney Wanderers 2–0 in the Grand Final at Allianz Stadium. Arnold re-signed with the club for a further two seasons on 30 August 2013, but on 14 November it was confirmed that he had signed a two-year contract to become manager of J. League Division 1 side Vegalta Sendai, starting in January 2014. Former assistant manager Phil Moss was named the new head coach. Mariners general manager Peter Turnbull left the club as well, and New Zealand international Michael McGlinchey moved to the J. League to play for Arnold's new side. Central Coast finished the 2013–14 A-League regular season in third place, behind runner-up Western Sydney on goal difference. In the semi-final, the Mariners' championship hopes ended with a 2–0 loss to Western Sydney; the game came three days after the team was eliminated from the 2014 AFC Champions League after losing to Japanese club Sanfrecce Hiroshima 1–0 to finish last in their group.

In what was Moss's first pre-season as coach, he did little to change what Arnold had built at the club. The only major changes in the side were with the addition of Senegalese international Malick Mané and Hungarian Richárd Vernes, and Marcos Flores leaving the club, with Mile Sterjovski retiring. Mariners began the season on a high, progressing to the semi-finals of the 2014 FFA Cup and defeating local rivals Newcastle Jets 1–0 at home in the opening round of the A-League. However the season soon turned with the team failing to secure a win for the remainder of the year. After their elimination from the 2015 AFC Champions League qualifying play-off by Chinese side Guangzhou R&F and a continued poor league record after a short mid-season break, the club stood down Moss as head coach. The decision was made on 6 March 2015, with Mariners appointing technical director Tony Walmsley in an interim capacity and captain John Hutchinson in a dual player-coach role, until the end of the season. Portuguese player Fábio Ferreira also joined the team at the tail end of the season. On 15 April Walmsley was announced as Central Coast's permanent technical director and head coach for the 2015–16 season. The announcement came despite an end to the season in which the club finished the league in eighth position.

Central Coast had their equal-worst A-League performance to date in the 2015–16 season. Their 13 points, the fewest in club history, resulted in a last-place finish, and they set a league record by losing 20 games while winning only 3, a record low for the Mariners. Central Coast allowed 70 goals, the most in league history, and had a goal difference of −37, the worst by an A-League team. The Mariners' totals of goals conceded at home and away (32 and 38 respectively) were also A-League records, and they went the entire season without a clean sheet.

In the 2016 FFA Cup, Central Coast suffered a 2–1 loss to Green Gully SC at Green Gully Reserve, becoming just the second A-League team to be eliminated by a state league team in the FFA Cup. Following this loss the club sacked Walmsley on 8 August 2016, with coaching duties in the leadup to the 2016–17 season taken up by assistant coach John Hutchinson in a caretaker role.

On 29 August 2016, Paul Okon was hired as Central Coast's full-time coach, succeeding the sacked Tony Walmsley. In Okon's debut as Central Coast manager, the Mariners drew 3–3 with Perth Glory at Nib Stadium, after coming back from 3–0 down at half time. Okon achieved his first win as Central Coast manager in his fifth game in charge: a 2–1 win over defending champions Adelaide United at Hindmarsh Stadium on 6 November 2016. However, the Mariners ended the season in eighth.

On 2 August 2017, for the second consecutive year, the Mariners were knocked out of the FFA Cup by a state league team in the first round, after losing 3–2 to Blacktown City. During the 2017–18 A-League season, the Mariners were in the top four at one stage, but after a run of 11 games without a win the club dropped down the table. Okon resigned as manager with Central Coast in ninth entering the last four rounds of the regular season; Wayne O'Sullivan served as an interim manager following Okon's departure. With a six-game losing streak at the end of the season, the team finished last for the second time in three years. Former Brisbane manager Mike Mulvey was hired by Central Coast in 2018. In the first 21 matches of the 2018–19 A-League season, the Mariners won only once. Mulvey was replaced as manager by Alen Stajcic, the former head coach of the Australia women's national team. Despite two wins in his six games as a caretaker manager, the Mariners were unable to avoid finishing at the bottom of the table again. Stajcic was given a three-year contract after the season.

On 4 August 2020, after playing their last game of the 2019–20 season, the Mariners were put up for sale by owner Michael Charlesworth, putting the club at risk of leaving the Central Coast. If no buyer is found, the Mariners' A-League license will be handed back to the FFA.^[]

In his second full season at the club, in 2020–21, Stajcic made some large signings, re-acquiring the services of former player Oliver Bozanic and signing Costa Rican international Marco Urena. The season had begun well with the Mariners beating local rivals Sydney FC in Sydney for the first time in seven years. The Mariners sat in first place after 16 rounds, but would drop points during the later rounds to finish in third place. This qualified the club for their first finals appearance in seven years. They would then lose to Macarthur FC 2–0 in the elimination finals on 12 June 2021.

Stajcic resigned ahead of the 2021–22 season the club, and was replaced by Nick Montgomery. Montgomery's first season continued on the success of previous one. He brought the club to its first ever FFA Cup final where they lost 2–1 to Melbourne Victory on 5 February 2022.^[] The Mariners also finished fifth in the A-League which qualified the club for a second consecutive finals series.^[] They were again knocked out in the elimination finals, this time by Adelaide United, losing 3–1 on 15 May 2022.^[]

On 3 June 2023, Central Coast played against Melbourne City in the 2023 A-League Men Grand Final. The Mariners defeated Melbourne City 6–1 to win their second A-League Championship, and their first in a decade, with Jason Cummings winning the Joe Marston Medal for best on ground.^[]

Ahead of the new season, Championship winning coach Nick Montgomery departed the club to become the head coach of Hibernian, and was replaced by former MK Dons coach Mark Jackson for the title defence. The 2023-24 season saw further success for the club, winning the A-League Premiership for finishing top of the table in the regular season, their first continental title after defeating Al Ahed in the 2024 AFC Cup final, and qualification for the upcoming A-League Finals Series. The Mariners would go on to beat Melbourne Victory 3–1 in extra time in the 2024 A-League Men Grand Final. This Achievement would mean that they had won the treble.

Central Coast returned to the continental tournament after 9 years since their 2015 AFC Champions League appearance and also making their debut in the AFC Cup. The Mariners were drawn in Group G alongside Malaysian side Terengganu, Indonesian side Bali United and Philippines side Stallion Laguna. On 20 September 2023, Central Coast played their debut match in a 1–0 away lost against Terengganu. In the next match on 4 October, the Mariners recorded their highest ever continental win thrashing Stallion Laguna to a whopping 9–1 victory. Central Coast went on to top the group as leaders with 13 points in which they qualified to the knockout stage. In the knockout stage which is also known as the zonal semi-finals, the Mariners faced Cambodian side Phnom Penh Crown on 13 February 2024, Central Coast went on to win the match 4–0 with Ryan Edmondson scoring a hat-trick to secure the club advancing to the zonal finals facing against Macarthur FC on 22 February, Central Coast went on to win the match in a narrow 3–2 win in extra time thus qualifying to the Inter-zone play-off semi-finals facing off Indian side Odisha winning them 4–0 on aggregate and advanced to the Inter-zone play-off finals facing off against Kyrgyzstani side Abdysh-Ata Kant where the Mariners won 4–1 on aggregate thus qualified to the 2024 AFC Cup final facing against Lebanese side Al Ahed. On 5 May, Central Coast played their final match at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Oman where in the 84th minute, super sub Alou Kuol scored the only goal in the match to win the AFC Cup for Central Coast.