Key events
79 mins: Tilio goes into Beath’s book for a cynical foul on Nkololo in transition after City were crowded out of a half chance in the box.
77 mins: City need a miracle but they’re running out of inspiration. Talbot tries to jink his way down the right but there’s a yellow wall in his way.
A couple more subs for the Mariners with Steele and Hall coming on for Balard and Roux.
75 mins: Melbourne City careering towards a third grand final defeat in four years. And this one will sting enormously.
74 mins: Only the second man to score a grand final hat-trick (after Archie Thompson) Jason Cummings has secured his place in A-League history in his final appearance.
GOAL! Melbourne City 1-4 Central Coast Mariners (Cummings, 72)
Jason Cummings has a hat-trick in the A-League grand final! The first was low to Glover’s right, the second high to the keeper’s left. Nervless penalty taking from the Cumdog. The Mariners are going to do it. They’re going to bloody do it!
Chris Beath awarded the spot-kick on the field. It is being reviewed by VAR but doesn’t look like it will be overturned. Cummings has a chance for a hat-trick…
PENALTY! (Central Coast Mariners)
… and the first thing the substitute does is handle the ball in the box, sliding to block a cross from Farrell the left. It is all going Pete Tong for Melbourne City.
69 mins: City return to their side-to-side passing moves but can’t identify any penetration. Nabbout goes on a run but runs out space quickly.
The premiers make an odd substitution with Talbot replacing Reis at the back.
67 mins: Lam strides out of defence like Beckenbauer for the second time tonight. He feeds Nabbout on the right but his cross doesn’t beat the first man and van der Venne can’t keep the move alive. Things are not working out for City.
GOAL! Melbourne City 1-3 Central Coast Mariners (Cummings, 65)
Jason Cummings restores the two-goal cushion! The Mariners haven’t had a sniff all half but they take full advantage of their one opportunity, Cummings sending Glover the wrong way to send the crowd wild.
PENALTY! (Central Coast Mariners)
Dear oh dear. Andrew Nabbout just whacks the substitute Farrell with a wild hoick of his right boot and concedes a stonewall penalty. Great skill preceding it by Silvera, but that was awful from the Socceroo.
63 mins: Speaking of subs, Montgomery makes his first change of the night with McGarry making way for Farrell.
62 mins: City grind to keep the ball alive in attack down the right but there’s a lack of cohesion on that side. Nabbout would be an easy player to substitute with City chasing the game.
60 mins: Finally some respite. A City foul on halfway allows the Mariners to slow the game down and then enjoy a rare spell of possession. It ends with Tulio offside on the run, but the assistant referee takes an age to raise his flag. It’s been a theme all night.
58 mins: City are pressing the life out of the Mariners and O’Neill thinks he’s forced the turnover but Beath adjudges there’s a foul instead and CCM escape. The Mariners are only just holding on here, shorn of their transitional out ball of the first half.
56 mins: Off the line! Nabbout is in acres on the right in transition. He slips the ball through to van der Venne who nicks the ball beyond Vukovic but without the force to beat the covering Triantis. The Mariners haven’t had a sniff all this half. Can City convert their pressure?
54 mins: City are pushing. Maclaren does superbly to release Nabbout on the right. The ball is slow to reach the box and eventually make its way through to Bos who has to bide his time while the ball drops and eventually his effort from 8 metres out is heroically blocked by Roux.
Soon after Leckie rattles the right-hand upright with a fierce half-volley on the run!
53 mins: City are moving the ball around confidently, evading the CCM press. Eventually they work it to Tilio on the half-turn but he overhits his through-ball to Maclaren.
52 mins: City can’t make any use of their second corner of the night, but they keep the ball alive outside the box and continue their dominance of possession this half.
51 mins: And that is a case in point from Kaltak, poking the ball clear from Leckie with the Socceroo flyer set to burst clear.
Meanwhile Triantis is the first Mariner in the book tonight for a foul on O’Neill.
50 mins: This half has all been played near the Mariners’ box so far, but the Central Coast defence has held its shape and intervened smartly when required.
48 mins: Lovely interplay on the left by Leckie and Tilio but the latter’s cross doesn’t find a blue shirt. This half much more circumspect so far.
46 mins: City on the front early in the second half but it’s slow and scrappy as the two teams bid to regain their momentum.
The teams are back out in Parramatta. The second half will be underway shortly.
Half-time: Melbourne City 1-2 Central Coast Mariners
One of the most entertaining halves in grand final history. End-to-end, action packed, great goals, brilliant saves, loads to enjoy.
45+4 mins: City enjoy another one of those phases of possession. This time it ends with a curious free-kick conceded off the ball by the run of Nabbout into the block of Silvera.
45+2 mins: Glover again to the rescue for City! Another ball over the top catches out the sky blue back four. Tulio holds it up and feeds Nkololo on the burst into the box but with only the keeper to beat Glover stretches out a boot to repel the ball downfield. The Mariners could easily have had five this half.
45 mins: The first yellow card of the night goes to Nuno Reis for a needless sliding challenge through the back of Silvera deep in the CCM half. That was an old school reducer that back in the day would be seen as fair game. Not any more, quite rightly.
43 mins: Tilio wriggles his way into space in midfield and finds van der Venne in acres advancing towards the box. With options left and right the goalscorer tries to chip an audacious second but makes a mess of his attempt, much to the annoyance of his well=placed teammates.
42 mins: This has been rollicking good fun.
GOAL! Melbourne City 1-2 Central Coast Mariners (van der Venne, 40)
City strike back! Good does brilliantly in an advanced position to squeeze a pass through to Maclaren. The skipper is one-on-one with Vukovic but eschews the shot in favour of a pullback to van der Venne. It’s not an easy ball to control but the substitute reacts with a brilliant instinctive finish to drag his side back into this contest. Game on!
37 mins: Lam thumps a 30 metre free-kick straight into the Central Coast wall. It caught the leaping Nkololo flush in the chops, which allows everyone to take a breather, replay the highlights of the two goals, and listen to the Mariners fans in full voice.
36 mins: That was superb from Silvera. He is such a talent, and that is a clear demonstration of what he can deliver when he’s on song. Reis at right-back looks a liability.
GOAL! Melbourne City 0-2 Central Coast Mariners (Silvera, 34)
The Mariners are in dreamland! Cummings works hard to retain possession 35m out from goal. He feeds Silvera who ghosts past Reis with a turn of speed that leaves the Portuguese in quicksand. From there he glides into the box and calmly sidefoots an unerring finish into the far corner. Brilliant individual goal.
33 mins: Maclaren smashes a snapshot miles wide after O’Neill drives into the box following a forward press turnover. City are back on the front foot, but that counts for little while the Mariners are ahead on the scoreboard.
32 mins: City are set up well to play like that with Leckie floating behind Maclaren, and Tilio, Bos and O’Neill adept at keeping the ball alive.
30 mins: The first slow phase of play of the night sees City work the ball around in triangles on the left. Eventually, Lam lets fly from downtown but his pile driver skids just wide of Vukovic’s right upright.
28 mins: Lam does incredibly well to step out and rob Silvera and stride downfield with purpose. He invites Nabbout to cross from the right but the delivery is woeful.
26 mins: Of course, as soon as I type that they have their best chance of the night. There’s acres of space in midfield for van der Venne to find O’Neill, who feeds Tilio on the left. The winger steps inside and lines up a right footed shot that’s straight at Vukovic. This is such an unfamiliar, open, end-to-end transitional match.
25 mins: Now Triantis has a half-chance at the near post with City napping. The premiers have disappeared after their bright opening spell.
24 mins: It’s nearly two! Tulio has a double chance, first getting on the outside of Reis and forcing Glover into a terrific save, then sending the rebound through the keeper’s legs but across the face of goal and wide. Central Coast attack like greased lightning and City are unable to keep pace in transition.
22 mins: To make matters worse for City, Berisha has been ruled unfit to continue. Richard van der Venne comes on in his place.
