Mitchell Duke has stolen an injury-time winner as the Central Coast started their A-League season with a 1-0 victory over derby rivals Newcastle at Central Coast Stadium on Saturday night.
Fans appeared resigned to a frustrating draw before Duke outmuscled Taylor Regan on the far post to poke home a long-range free kick from Glen Trifiro in the 91st minute.
The Jets appealed for a foul after Regan went down but their cries were ignored.
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It ruined an otherwise bright start for the Jets under new coach Phil Stubbins.
They were tipped in some quarters to take the wooden spoon after the loss of Emile Heskey, Josh Brillante, Ruben Zadkovich and golden boot Adam Taggart.
Northern Irishman Jonny Steele, who was disappointing in the first half, had a golden opportunity for the Jets in the 57th minute when one-on-one with an out-of-position Liam Reddy, but his chipped shot was too strong.
In the first half, the Jets were impressive and found the back of the net in the 36th minute through Ecuadorian striker Edson Montano, but it was disallowed correctly for offside.
But the Mariners also had their moments.
Exciting Senegalese striker Malick Mane was a regular threat and went closest for the Mariners in the 33rd minute when central defender Sam Gallagher cleared his shot off the line.
Korean Seung-yong Kim also threatened the Jets’ goal, missing narrowly with a curling free kick from the edge of the area in the 26th minute.
Kim came in for plenty of attention and was on the end of a yellow-carded challenge from Regan in the ninth minute and elbow from Steele in the 56th.
Mariners coach Phil Moss said it was not a pretty performance from his side but he saw glimpses of their best and praised their “resolute” defence.
“It’s a derby and you don’t expect it to be an open affair,” Moss said.
“It’s a tight game and it was physical, in the middle of the park particularly, and I thought both teams had their chances to win the game.
“I’m obviously just so proud of my boys to keep the belief until the 94th minute to grab a goal, and I always thought that in the last five minutes there would be one big chance.
Stubbins said it was a game “we let go” but he was encouraged by the effort.
He said he was unsure if there was a foul in the lead-up to the Duke goal.
“It was a cruel way to lose the game, that’s for sure,” Stubbins said.
“I spoke about winning and what it cost and I think we got the perfect instance there at the end of the game, that that’s what it costs dealing with a situation that close to the end of the game, and we didn’t deal with it.
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