Post by bobandbill on Mar 9, 2007 15:56:31 GMT 10
Off the Mariners website: www.ccmariners.com.au/default.aspx?s=spotlight&id=7231
The Central Coast Mariners’ acquisition of Sasho Petrovski, one of the Hyundai A-League’s leading marksmen, was a telling show of intent from Mariners Football Manager Lawrie McKinna.
Only two weeks after the Mariners were eliminated from the race for the 2007/08 Hyundai A-League Championship, McKinna secured the services of the Socceroos sharp shooter.
While there was little doubting that some of the Mariners’ lead up play and defensive stout was equal to or perhaps an improvement of their efforts in season one, up front was where the Central Coast was too often found wanting in 2006/07.
Enter Petrovski – a striker with a record paralleled by only an elite few in Australia’s top flight football competitions.
Several months out from version three of the Hyundai A-League, ccmariners.com.au caught up with the man that Mariners fans hope will influence a change of fortunes for the yellow and navy in 2007/08.
Firstly, welcome to the Central Coast, how does it feel to have penned a deal with the Mariners?
It’s very exciting, I feel great. I’m freshening up now with this break between seasons and I just can’t wait to put the Mariners jersey on, meet all the boys and come into training with them.
How did your move to the Central Coast come about?
That’s a very good question, with an interesting answer! I was sitting reading the Daily Telegraph and, at the time, there was a lot of press being generated by Sydney FC with all the dramas that were happening there last season. I was reading through all of that and my name was mentioned in some parts and just next to the articles about Sydney FC was one saying that the Mariners were looking for a hit man! At that stage, I hadn’t sealed anything in regards to talks I was having at the time with a club in Japan, so I thought it might be a good idea to approach the Central Coast and clear the air a little and let them know my situation. In the paper it was saying that I was definitely going to Japan and the deal was done and that I was out of the Mariners limits. I quickly got on to the phone and cleared that up with Lawrie McKinna. After that phone call took place, everything came together very quickly and after some negotiations between Lawrie, Lyall Gorman and myself, I was signed, sealed and delivered and I was really happy with the way that it was all worked out.
What has been your impression of the club since joining?
My impressions have been of a very high regard. Everyone that I have dealt with at the club has been fantastic. The ambition of the club is huge and the people around the club are all very passionate and everyone has a lot of desire. To have such surroundings, with people that share the goals that I have set for myself - it’s a great feeling.
You’ve been to Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium on a few occasions and have been quite successful upon your visits, how have you enjoyed your time at the home of the Mariners?
It’s a lovely Stadium, I really enjoy playing there. There’s a lot of great Stadiums in the Hyundai A-League that we are able to play in and Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium is up there with the best. It’s going to be great to run out in front of the crowd there and hopefully we’ll fill the Stadium up for some big finals games – that’s the big picture that we’re all aiming for and that’s what we all want to achieve. By working hard and getting stuck in to pre-season training with my new teammates, we can produce the right results for fans to get out and enjoy.
You’re the first big name signing of the off-season, are you optimistic that Lawrie and his coaching staff are piecing together a competitive unit for season three?
That’s exactly what the club is looking at. Lawrie and the coaching staff have identified their targets and they’re trying to lure those players in to the quality team that they have already assembled. I think the club is doing exactly what they need to do, they’ve identified their targets and they’re looking into securing a few of them to put a Championship winning team together. It’s now up to the players to live up to the expectations of our fans and deliver.
Does the possibility of playing alongside the likes of Andre Gumprecht, Adam Kwasnik and Tom Pondeljak, some of the Mariners’ most recognised attacking players, excite you?
Of course! I’m looking forward to it. It’s always nice to know the players that you’re going to be playing with and what they’re capable of and I know a lot of them through playing with them or against them and I have respect for all of them for what they’ve achieved in Australia. Tommy and Andre were among the best attacking players in the old National Soccer League and have been fantastic at the Mariners, they’ve been stepping up when they’ve had the opportunity. Adam Kwasnik had a fabulous year in my opinion, he scored a lot of goals and hopefully he’s in for a bigger season in 2007/08. I know that all of the players will be disappointed at not making the finals last season after such a good inaugural year, but that’s in the past now and we’re looking ahead and the sooner we all get together and start gelling as a unit, the better!
Many Mariners fans would like to see yourself up front with Nik Mrdja next season, how formidable do you think a partnership between Nik and yourself can become?
Absolutely. There’s a lot of different combinations that Lawrie can look at and one of those combinations is Nik and myself. We’re pretty similar players, we’re both target men who like to score and we know where the goal is. Nik is a big game player and I think we’ll complement each other really well. If we can build a lethal partnership like Danny Allsopp and Archie Thompson have done with Melbourne, that’s what we’ve got to work towards from day one and hopefully we’ll click together when the business end of the season comes, so that the whole team and the whole club can benefit from it.
What do you believe the Mariners should be aiming towards in 2007/08?
That’s a difficult question. You can’t predict what is going to happen in football these days, anything can happen. With a few key injuries it becomes difficult to find quality players to replace them and provide what you’ve lost through injury. There’s a lot of variables, but I think that we probably missed a goal scorer last season, so the main thing is, if we can score a lot of goals and keep the defence nice and tight like it was, we can go a long way. Anything in the top four would be nice to achieve, first or second would be brilliant, and anything can happen from there.
It sounds very positive from him, and one of the questions being about him and Nik up front, it also sounds that Mrdja is in good shape too!
The Central Coast Mariners’ acquisition of Sasho Petrovski, one of the Hyundai A-League’s leading marksmen, was a telling show of intent from Mariners Football Manager Lawrie McKinna.
Only two weeks after the Mariners were eliminated from the race for the 2007/08 Hyundai A-League Championship, McKinna secured the services of the Socceroos sharp shooter.
While there was little doubting that some of the Mariners’ lead up play and defensive stout was equal to or perhaps an improvement of their efforts in season one, up front was where the Central Coast was too often found wanting in 2006/07.
Enter Petrovski – a striker with a record paralleled by only an elite few in Australia’s top flight football competitions.
Several months out from version three of the Hyundai A-League, ccmariners.com.au caught up with the man that Mariners fans hope will influence a change of fortunes for the yellow and navy in 2007/08.
Firstly, welcome to the Central Coast, how does it feel to have penned a deal with the Mariners?
It’s very exciting, I feel great. I’m freshening up now with this break between seasons and I just can’t wait to put the Mariners jersey on, meet all the boys and come into training with them.
How did your move to the Central Coast come about?
That’s a very good question, with an interesting answer! I was sitting reading the Daily Telegraph and, at the time, there was a lot of press being generated by Sydney FC with all the dramas that were happening there last season. I was reading through all of that and my name was mentioned in some parts and just next to the articles about Sydney FC was one saying that the Mariners were looking for a hit man! At that stage, I hadn’t sealed anything in regards to talks I was having at the time with a club in Japan, so I thought it might be a good idea to approach the Central Coast and clear the air a little and let them know my situation. In the paper it was saying that I was definitely going to Japan and the deal was done and that I was out of the Mariners limits. I quickly got on to the phone and cleared that up with Lawrie McKinna. After that phone call took place, everything came together very quickly and after some negotiations between Lawrie, Lyall Gorman and myself, I was signed, sealed and delivered and I was really happy with the way that it was all worked out.
What has been your impression of the club since joining?
My impressions have been of a very high regard. Everyone that I have dealt with at the club has been fantastic. The ambition of the club is huge and the people around the club are all very passionate and everyone has a lot of desire. To have such surroundings, with people that share the goals that I have set for myself - it’s a great feeling.
You’ve been to Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium on a few occasions and have been quite successful upon your visits, how have you enjoyed your time at the home of the Mariners?
It’s a lovely Stadium, I really enjoy playing there. There’s a lot of great Stadiums in the Hyundai A-League that we are able to play in and Bluetongue Central Coast Stadium is up there with the best. It’s going to be great to run out in front of the crowd there and hopefully we’ll fill the Stadium up for some big finals games – that’s the big picture that we’re all aiming for and that’s what we all want to achieve. By working hard and getting stuck in to pre-season training with my new teammates, we can produce the right results for fans to get out and enjoy.
You’re the first big name signing of the off-season, are you optimistic that Lawrie and his coaching staff are piecing together a competitive unit for season three?
That’s exactly what the club is looking at. Lawrie and the coaching staff have identified their targets and they’re trying to lure those players in to the quality team that they have already assembled. I think the club is doing exactly what they need to do, they’ve identified their targets and they’re looking into securing a few of them to put a Championship winning team together. It’s now up to the players to live up to the expectations of our fans and deliver.
Does the possibility of playing alongside the likes of Andre Gumprecht, Adam Kwasnik and Tom Pondeljak, some of the Mariners’ most recognised attacking players, excite you?
Of course! I’m looking forward to it. It’s always nice to know the players that you’re going to be playing with and what they’re capable of and I know a lot of them through playing with them or against them and I have respect for all of them for what they’ve achieved in Australia. Tommy and Andre were among the best attacking players in the old National Soccer League and have been fantastic at the Mariners, they’ve been stepping up when they’ve had the opportunity. Adam Kwasnik had a fabulous year in my opinion, he scored a lot of goals and hopefully he’s in for a bigger season in 2007/08. I know that all of the players will be disappointed at not making the finals last season after such a good inaugural year, but that’s in the past now and we’re looking ahead and the sooner we all get together and start gelling as a unit, the better!
Many Mariners fans would like to see yourself up front with Nik Mrdja next season, how formidable do you think a partnership between Nik and yourself can become?
Absolutely. There’s a lot of different combinations that Lawrie can look at and one of those combinations is Nik and myself. We’re pretty similar players, we’re both target men who like to score and we know where the goal is. Nik is a big game player and I think we’ll complement each other really well. If we can build a lethal partnership like Danny Allsopp and Archie Thompson have done with Melbourne, that’s what we’ve got to work towards from day one and hopefully we’ll click together when the business end of the season comes, so that the whole team and the whole club can benefit from it.
What do you believe the Mariners should be aiming towards in 2007/08?
That’s a difficult question. You can’t predict what is going to happen in football these days, anything can happen. With a few key injuries it becomes difficult to find quality players to replace them and provide what you’ve lost through injury. There’s a lot of variables, but I think that we probably missed a goal scorer last season, so the main thing is, if we can score a lot of goals and keep the defence nice and tight like it was, we can go a long way. Anything in the top four would be nice to achieve, first or second would be brilliant, and anything can happen from there.
It sounds very positive from him, and one of the questions being about him and Nik up front, it also sounds that Mrdja is in good shape too!
