Why Sheffield United fans should be cheering on Central Coast Mariners in the A-League grand final
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Throw in an accent on youth too, with the Mariners handing more minutes to home grown players than any other club in A-League competition, and Montgomery believes any United followers who watch them face Melbourne City in today’s Australian Grand Final are bound to feel an affinity with his side.
“I still follow United and watch as many games as I can,” Montgomery, who made nearly 400 appearances for them before heading Down Under, told The Star. “And there’s definitely a lot in common between us, which always makes me smile. We give opportunities, which is something that always happens at Bramall Lane, and there’s a real spirit between the group as well. You don’t get anywhere without that.
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Hide Ad“We like to try and get on the front foot, to give it ‘a go’ just like United have been doing, and at the same time play some exciting football. But underneath all of that, and again this the same again, we try and make ourselves damn hard to beat. Plus, we’ve really tried to make sure we’ve got a connection with the area we represent as well. That’s something United have always been big on, ever since I can remember, also. Be down to earth.”
The meeting with City, which is being staged in the Sydney suburbs after competition chiefs sold the rights to the event rather than award it to the league winners, pits the side with the smallest budget - the Mariners - against opponents who operate under the same minted umbrella as Manchester City. For Montgomery, whose squad finished second after turning their financial handicap into an advantage, the fixture at CommBank Stadium will be a deeply emotional as well as professionally significant moment. After leaving United to join the Mariners in 2012, he was prohibited from appearing in their Grand Final against Western Sydney Wanderers because of suspension. A brush with the authorities cost Montgomery dear again this term. Following a controversial sending-off from the touchine - “It was ridiculous really,” he insisted last month - an antiquated rule prevented him from being considered for the coach of the year award he should have been a shoe-in for. Instead, it went to another former United player - Carl Veart - whose Adelaide outfit were beaten by the Mariners in the semi-finals.
As well as a wonderful collection of youngsters - “I came through the academy at United and was given a chance so, because we’ve got a great youth programme here, why not use it?” - Montgomery has also sprinkled his roster with more experienced performers such as Jason Cummings. A huge admirer of Montgomery, the former Hibernian, Nottingham Forest and Scotland forward has gone on record to state that he would have been an established PL performer in England had he worked with Montgomery sooner.
“Opportunities, that’s the key,” he said. “Those and being together, all as one.”