The trickle of rain did little to ease the heat on field, with the first 45 minutes full of near misses from the Central Coast Mariners, including multiple from Oliver Bozanic that were denied by Blacktown City's Tristan Prendergast.

After returning from the half time break, pressure from both outfits was dialed up, with the seconds that etched closer to the 90 minute mark precious chances missed at scoring.

Blacktown were the first to make an attempt at goal minutes after their return, which was swiftly shut down by the Mariners' goalkeeper, Mark Birighitti.

The beat of a Blacktown fan's drum kept the pulse of the crowd alive while players gave it their all with less than 20 minutes remaining.

'Mariners! Mariners! Mariners!' was the chant from many, desperate for the yellow and navy contingent to get on the board, which was met with a reply moments later from Central Coast's Beni Nkololo, who scored the first point at 75 minutes.

Despite multiple attempts from Blacktown, the Mariners followed through on their promise to entertain, returning to the Central Coast with a round 32 FFA Cup win, 1-0.

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