http://www.smh.com.au/sport/a-league/plain-sailing-for-arnold-as-unsung-mariners-cruise-into-second-place-20110203-1afib.html
WHILE the Socceroos had a nation of bleary-eyed sports fans furiously chewing their nails in the early hours of Sunday morning, some 11,000 kilometres away from Doha, Graham Arnold was sleeping soundly in his Adelaide hotel room.
Make of that what you will, but four years on from Arnold's darkest hour - as Australia's coach for the ill-fated 2007 Asian Cup campaign - it's clear he's made a clean break from the green and gold to rebuild his own coaching credentials.
Arnold slept especially well that night, for his task a few hours earlier was cleared with flying colours. The club he manages, Central Coast, had just defeated Adelaide United 2-1, effectively sealing second place, putting them on track for a much-coveted double chance in the finals.
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In a memorable debut season in the domestic dugout, this was Arnold's crowning moment so far, and a poignant twist of fate to that of the national team.
''That was the best win we've had this year, no doubt about it,'' he said. ''Our away form has been fantastic this season - we've only lost twice all year, and one of those was against Brisbane - but that first half was something special. We haven't played a better 45 minutes anywhere this season. We tore them to pieces, and could have been three or four up by half-time. Young [goalkeeper] Matty Ryan had nothing to do. Then we followed up with a really professional performance in the second half. It was exactly what I wanted.''
Yet while Arnold is delighted with the consistency of the team and their character - ''You couldn't wish to meet a better group of players to work with'' - he's not convinced we've seen the best of them.
''I'm very proud of how we've played this year but there's more to come, don't worry about that,'' he said. ''We can still improve another 10 per cent before the end of the season. This group is always ready for the occasion, and I think they now understand what it's going to take. They've impressed me with how much they want this.''
In talking about potential championship contenders, it's been notable how little media coverage the Mariners have received outside their regional base. Brisbane Roar and Adelaide United have drawn headlines for their fluid football, while troubles at Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory have been talking points. By contrast, the Mariners have been quietly going about their business.
''I have a wonderful clipping at home where a lot of pundits tipped us to come 10th and fight out the wooden spoon against North Queensland. That still motivates the players,'' he said. ''People still continually ignore us and continually tip against us, it's incredible. Yet we haven't been outside the top four since round one.''
Arnold conceded that second spot was theirs to lose, and attention was already turning to ending the regular season on a high note and then facing Ange Postecoglou's Brisbane juggernaut over two legs for the right to host the grand final. But with Brisbane now 23 games unbeaten, an Australian record, do the Mariners have what it takes to push them all the way?
''It's a credit to Ange for the record they've just broken but we've definitely closed the gap, and I think if we hold second spot, I'm very confident we'll give them a huge shake,'' he said. ''That recent 3-3 draw at home showed it. We should have won that game, and since that night the players' self-belief has grown. They've gone to another level football-wise.''
Then there is Patricio Perez, who scored a goal and laid on the other against Adelaide, finally justifying the hype. But the coach warned that was just a glimpse of of his true ability.
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