Having taken on a Tasmanian representative side on Sunday, the Central Coast Mariners will now face off with South Hobart at Lightwood Park tonight. The Mariners won that game 3-1, but were given a good hit out by the Tasmanian side and now look to flex their muscle against the Lakoseljac Cup Champions.
The young South Hobart side will be relishing their next chance to take on top quality opposition having played in the FFA Cup Round of 32 earlier this season. Now they get their shot to show what they can do against A-League quality opponents under the lights of the Den.
For the South players it's a wonderful opportunity to test themselves against full time professionals, with the like of Kobe Kemp, Adam Gorrie and Ben Hamlett having already done so by running out as part of the Tasmanian side on Sunday.
For youngsters such as Sam Berezansky, Kasper Hallam, Bradley Lakoseljac and Sam Tooze, who we have seen exposed to senior football in 2019, it offers a glimpse at where they will be hoping to reach one day, and the standards that will be required to get there. The more top level games we can get down here, the better for all of our young players and enormous credit must go to South Hobart for bringing the Mariners down here and providing these opportunities.
Ben Hamlett spoke to the challenge that players faced in going up such a level in competition.
“The speed of play is at another level, the ball is moving quicker and it’s physically more demanding. The decision-making has got to be quick."
He said he relished such chances though and that if local players had the chance to train full time you would see Tasmania doing well at higher levels.
“I relish the opportunity to play against top-class opposition. If you give this State an opportunity to have an environment where you’re, week in, week out, training together every day in a professional environment and playing at the highest level, you’ll see Tasmania rockin’ it on the national stage.
The Mariners spent the morning at a Campbell Street School Clinic, looking to leave their mark on the local community whilst they tour down here. Yesterday they helped run a Junior Girls Only clinic at Darcy Street that saw over 200 young girls get the opportunity to learn from the A-League stars.
Tonight's game kicks off at 6:30pm at Lightwood Park. Tickets are available at the gate, or online via https://events.humanitix.com.au/south-hobart-fc-v-central-coast-mariners