Central Coast, Brisbane down to wire for 1st place

SYDNEY (AP)—Central Coast and Brisbane each won their penultimate matches in Australia’s A-League on Saturday, ensuring first place would be decided in the 27th and final round of the regular season next weekend.

Bernie Ibini scored his sixth goal of the season in a 1-0 Mariners victory over Adelaide United while Brisbane beat Newcastle 2-1. The first-place Mariners lead the Roar by two points.

The Melbourne Heart and Sydney FC drew 2-2, guaranteeing the Heart a playoff spot, while out-of-contract Costa Rican striker Carlos Hernandez scored a long-range goal in the 11th minute to start the Melbourne Victory’s 3-0 rout of the Wellington Phoenix on Friday.

In the final match of the round Sunday, last-place Gold Coast United beat Perth Glory 3-0.

Both the Mariners and Roar have away matches next weekend, but Central Coast has the much longer road trip, having to travel to Wellington, New Zealand to play the Phoenix. Brisbane, meanwhile, only has to take a short bus ride south on the Pacific Motorway to play Gold Coast.

Confident after pushing the Roar to a 1-1 draw last weekend, Adelaide outplayed the Mariners for much of the first half in slippery conditions following a torrential downpour shortly after kickoff. Bruce Djite nearly gave Adelaide a 1-0 lead in the fourth minute, but he was unable to direct his headed shot past Matt Ryan.

The Mariners scored the only goal two minutes into the second half when Ibini steered his header past Eugene Galekovic from Pedj Bojic’s cross.

Mariners coach Graham Arnold said his team’s first-half performance was flat but he was pleased with how his side responded in the second.

“I think that was the best we’ve played in the second half with our brains, and the boys did exceptionally well,” Arnold said.

Brisbane coach Ange Postecoglou had predicted the race for first place would go down to the wire. The Roar were in first place until the third week of December on the back of a national record 36-match unbeaten streak carried into this season.

“Seven weeks ago, we were 11 points behind the Mariners and, in the last seven weeks, we’ve played every team in the top six away, bar the Heart, and we’ve won all of them,” he said.

Albanian import Besart Berisha put Brisbane in front with his record-equalling 19th goal of the season, and the Jets’ Ali Abbas replied in the first half before Mitch Nichols scored the 81st-minute winner from a penalty for the Roar.

The Heart booked their first A-League finals berth despite Sydney FC substitute Shannon Cole scoring twice to give the visitors a comeback draw.