Former Sheffield United favourite set for the biggest game of his managerial career so far

Montgomery, who earlier this week drew comparisons between the character of the Mariners and Paul Heckingbottom’s side after commending his old club on returning to the Premier League, has become one of the most talked about head coaches in Australia after taking charge of the Gosford based team.

Handing more opportunities to home grown talent than any of his counterparts in the competition, Montgomery guided the Mariners to a second placed finish in the end of season table. That saw them paired with Adelaide, who are led by another ex-United player Carl Veart, in the play-off semi-finals with the winner of their tie set to meet either Sydney FC or Melbourne City at the CommBank Stadium, Parramatta, next month.

Despite basing his squad around graduates of the Mariners academy, Montgomery was delighted with the mental strength they demonstrated en route to a 2-1 victory in the first instalment of their double header against Adelaide.

“I like the fact that after two minutes we went down one-nil to a penalty which was a tough call,” he said. “We took it in and after two minutes, a big crowd of almost 16,000 away to Adelaide who are a very good team. I think that’s the first time this season they’ve gone one nil up and lost the game as well, so we take a lot of confidence from that.”

“The resilience, the mindset and for the boys to show the composure they did after that and take a stranglehold of the game, we created four or five very good chances and quite possibly the game could have been finished at halftime,” Montgomery added.

Mariners, who possess the smallest budget in the tournament, have named a 20 strong squad for tomorrow’s return at their Industree Group Stadium with kick-off scheduled for 10.45am UK time. After falling behind to Craig Goodwin’s early spot-kick, they responded with strikes from James McGarry and Jason Cummings, whose career has been resurrected under Montgomery.

With the possibility of a first GF victory since 2013 piquing the interest of the Mariners’ supporters, Montgomery said: “If we can get the highest attendance of the finals with big teams like Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney involved, I think that’s unbelievable for the Central Coast. I think that shows that with a young team and a team that’s performing and playing good football, you can attract a big crowd.”

Montgomery, who made nearly 400 appearances for United before moving Down Under just over decade ago, initially joined the Mariners as a player before progressing to the top job following stints in both their academy and senior backroom staff. Speaking to The Star last weekend, he expressed his desire to arrange a friendly between his employers and United at some point in the near future.

“The fans have been unbelievable since I took the job as the head coach,” he said. “I’ve always got on really well with them as a player. For them to come and give their support, one last push for us to get to the grand final, I’m really looking forward to it.”