Round of 16 wrap

Olympic FC 1

(McLean 57)

Central Coast Mariners 3

(Fitzgerald 2, Sim 38, Trifiro 86)

It all went to plan in the first half for the Mariners.

A flowing move down the wing was finished by the head of Nick Fitzgerald at the far post inside the first 120 seconds.  

It calmed any nerves for the Hyundai A-League side as they hammered the Olympic goal with keeper Shannon Lancini holding the line brilliantly.

For Olympic, Matt Byrne and Darren Gray made way due to injury, making their job even harder. And after Fitzgerald hit the post, Mariner Matt Sim made it 2-0 just before half-time with a rocket shot from the edge of the box.

But the comeback was on when Olympic’s Cup hero Jake McLean burst through, with his give-and-go on the edge of the box and smart finish dragged back the contest to 2-1 just inside the hour.

It made for an uncomfortable final half an hour as home fans roused and the red and white shirts pressed hard. But Glen Trifiro stemmed the tide when he profited from sloppy defence from keeper Lancini to seal the win with a low finish to end Olympic’s Cup run.