Beaten 4-0 by Western United last week, the first time the expansion franchise had been beaten in their short history, the instant response from Steve Corica's side at Central Coast Stadium on Saturday afternoon ensured that regardless of results elsewhere, they will enter a blockbuster New Year's Day clash with Melbourne Victory at the competition's summit.
The Mariners will take the field the day prior for their traditional New Year's Eve fixture, this time against Melbourne City and could be without Lucas Mauragis after he was forced off.
Hiroki Sakai got the Kiwis off to a strong start in the 12th minute when he powered a header past Mariners keeper Dylan Peraic-Cullen, following a perfectly placed cross from Francis De Vries.
The hosts levelled things three minutes later when Mikael Doka squared a free kick to the top of the box and Alfie McCalmont laced a deflected effort past Alex Pualsen, but Auckland soon moved to take back control.
That is one CLASSY finish 😮�💨🔥— Isuzu UTE A-League (@aleaguemen) .@fc_auckland restored their lead thanks to this outrageous goal from Jake Brimmer! Watch #CCMvAKL live on Paramount + and 10 Bold /10 Play pic.twitter.com/6FK2Ca2ftVDecember 28, 2024
Jake Brimmer restored the lead in the 31st minute with a snap outside-of-the-boot attempt after an initially wayward first touch and it was 3-1 in the 38th when Guillermo May pounced to poke home after a De Vries cross snaked past Brimmer, defender Nathan Paull and Peraic-Cullen.
Inserted into the starting XI for the first time this season after recovering from a chest injury, Socceroos defender Trent Sainsbury was taken off by Mark Jackson at halftime as part of a shift from a back five to a back four.
The Mariners had the best of play following the adjustment but substitute Logan Rogerson's 84th-minute strike condemned them to back-to-back home game losses conceding four goals.
