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Central Coast Mariners coach Paul Okon has stepped down from his role at the club effective immidiately.
The Australian reports Okon, who was contracted the Central Coast into next season, decided he wouldn’t be staying with the club after refusing to accept a number of conditions to retain his job for the final season of that contract.
There are also rumours that the coach walked out of a meeting with club management on Tuesday afternoon.
@CCMariners boss Paul Okon has quit the club today, walking out in the midst of a meeting with management. Full story online shortly.
— Tom Smithies (@SmithiesTele) March 20, 2018
Okon, who received 28 Socceroos caps during his nearly two-decade-long playing career, began coaching in 2008 and has been at Mariners for the better part of two seasons, starting in 2016.
Before that, he had spent time in the national set-up, coaching the Australian under-18s and under-20s team, before spending four years as an assistant with the Australian under-23s.
Okon has struggled to get the best out of his team during the 2017-18 campaign. After a strong start which saw them surge into the top four early on, Central Coast have fallen all the way back to ninth on the ladder, only ahead of the lowly Wellington Phoenix.
While they put in a strong performance against the league-leading Sydney FC not so long ago, the club have just four wins and eight draws to show for their 23 matches so far in 2017-18.
The 2016-17 season was a write off in many ways for Okon, given he only had a few weeks to prepare after being given the job. This season has been a major disappointment though, with the coach set to finish with just ten wins and 13 draws from 50 matches in charge.
UPDATE: The Mariners have released a statement confirming Okon’s departure from the club, with assistant coach Ivan Jolic also leaving immediately.
The Central Coast Mariners wish to advise that Paul Okon has today informed the club that he will not continue as Head Coach, effective immediately.
Both Paul Okon and the Central Coast Mariners have been in discussions for several weeks about the strategic direction of the football club. Given the club’s future strategies and plans, both parties have agreed that it is best to end the association immediately to give the club an opportunity during this vital period to re-sign players and target new players.
Paul Okon said: “I will forever be grateful to the Mariners for the opportunity they gave me. I thank the players for their commitment and the fans for their support. Finally, I wish the club all the best in the future.”
Assistant Coach Ivan Jolic has also completed his tenure with the Central Coast Mariners, effective immediately.
For the remainder of the Hyundai A-League 2017/18 season the club’s Foxtel National Youth League Head Coach, Wayne O’Sullivan has been appointed as caretaker coach.
The Central Coast Mariners would like to thank Okon & Jolic for their efforts and wish them all the best with their future endeavours.