Invigorated Mariners have heads turning

Central Coast knows it will probably come unstuck at times with its new, more adventurous style of play but it has proved to be effective so far and the Mariners will be taking the show on the road against Brisbane Roar on Sunday.

Nick Fitzgerald is excited by the Mariners' more expansive style of play, which has already earned plaudits from fans.

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The Mariners opened with a very well received 3-2 home win against Perth Glory, after leading by two goals deep into added time, but Roar was also impressive with a 3-1 away win over Western Sydney Wanderers and now has the home-ground advantage at Suncorp Stadium.

"We're going to go out with the same mentality against Brisbane and press high early and try to get on top of them," Mariners midfielder Nick Fitzgerald said.

"When Tony (Walmsley) and 'Hutch' (John Hutchinson) came in as coaches they wanted to change the style of play and make it more attacking and press higher and we've come out with a new mentality this year.

After winning the championship in 2012-2013 and making the finals again the following year, the Mariners slumped to eighth last season, when the team was reduced to sitting back and trying to contain the opposition.

Fitzgerald said that in a competition which offered finals positions to six of the 10 teams, it didn't make sense to play a dour brand of football and hope for the best when there was so much on offer if you were prepared to take a chance.

Particularly when it is a club like the Mariners, which depends heavily on community support and money through the gate.

"The fans want to see us win by playing well and I think the important thing last weekend was that we gave them a good attacking brand of football to come out and watch," Fitzgerald said. "And they came out in good numbers and were very vocal and helped get us over the line, I reckon.

"We've had good feedback about the way we're playing. The public wants to see Australia developing good young players and playing good football and we've got nothing to lose, really.

"Go out and try to play some attacking football instead of sitting back and trying to get the opposition on the counter-attack. We're trying to press high and win the ball further up the field  and let our attacking players do the rest.

Fitzgerald said that if something did go wrong, it would be up to the players to stay strong and not get thrown off their game.

"There are going to be times when it might not work and we might get pinned back or a quality team might get a goal or two on us," he said. "But I don't think it's going to change our mentality. We're going to be positive and try to play as much attacking football as we can.

"We want to get back in the finals where we belong."

Fitzgerald, 23, is one of the few players left at the Mariners from the club's only championship-winning team. He came off the bench for the last few minutes of what was a 2-0 win over Western Sydney Wanderers in the grand final.

"Being part of that squad makes you want to push harder and get into the finals, because you know what it's like to play on that stage and it makes you want it even more when you've been there," he said.

"It was a very special squad and I'm not sure how many more are going to be like that. Mat Ryan and Trent Sainsbury were in the team and they're regular Socceroos now.

"For me, it was a great learning curve to come through as a young player here and play with guys like Danny McBreen and Michael McGlinchey. I consider myself one of the senior players here now."