Mariners floating again according to Bayliss
Central Coast Mariners attacker Lachlan Bayliss said he believes the team have put a choppy start to the National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s season behind them.
It’s been a tricky introduction to the NPL NSW Men for the Mariners who were promoted from the Football NSW League One competition in 2022.
With coach Andrew Christiansen departing the club after last year’s success, former Wollongong Wolves coach Luke Wilkshire came into the role.
However, just three games into the 2023 season, Wilkshire left to become the assistant Young Socceroos coach.
Abbas Saad took the reins of the A-League Men’s Academy outfit with the side winless in their first three matches.
The side continued to struggle early on under Saad winning one game from his first six in charge.
Bayliss explained the team’s tough run to start the year could be put down to difficulty in adjusting to the increased level of competition. Despite the side’s mixed results, the teenager praised Saad’s coaching methods since taking charge.
“It’s been a big step up and as a team we struggled,” Bayliss said.
“We would do so well for long periods of the game and then let ourselves down for 10-15 minutes. You can’t do that in this league because you get punished.
“It’s always a bit of a shuffle when coaches change, but Abbas has come in and done a great job and all the boys are on board and wanting to give their all for him week in, week out.
“I really enjoy playing under him. He believes in me and wants to get the best out of me. He keeps giving me points on what I can do better each week because you never have a perfect game.”
A gutsy draw against high-flying St George City where Central Coast copped a goal in the final three minutes kick-started a dramatic improvement in form. They are now on an unbeaten run of four matches including two huge victories in a row over title hopefuls Rockdale Ilinden and Sydney United 58.
Bayliss has also recently come into a rich vein of form with three goals in his last three matches. The exciting forward was one of the brightest talents in the League One Men last season scoring 14 goals – a tally he hopes to surpass this time around.
He said recent positive results have boosted the confidence in the group and believes the team has the potential to challenge anyone in the competition now.
“It’s much more difficult to get on the scoresheet so you cherish every goal that you score in this league,” Bayliss said.
“I feel like now we have really turned a corner and massively improved on what was letting us down in the first few rounds.
“We’re building some really good momentum; all the boys have built up confidence and belief that this is where we belong, and we can compete with the best of the teams in this league.”
The side face another important test against Manly United this weekend. The Mariners are currently level on points with United, but with a win, the team could jump towards the middle of the table.
Feature by Timothy Gibson, on Twitter @Timg123_
