The 2005–06 season was the first for both the Central Coast Mariners and the A-League
| Club: | Central Coast Mariners FC |
| Season: | 2005–06 |
| Manager: | Lawrie McKinna |
| Mgrtitle: | Manager |
| League: | A-League |
| League Result: | 3rd |
| Cup1: | Finals |
| Cup1 Result: | 2nd |
| Cup2: | Pre-season cup |
| Cup2 Result: | 1st |
| Biggest Win: | 4-0 V Perth 16 October 2005 |
| Biggest Loss: | 1-5 v Sydney 5 November 2005 |
| League Topscorer: | S. Petrie (8) |
| Nextseason: | 2006–07 |
Compared with its Sydney rival, the Central Coast Mariners had a far more low-key buildup to the inaugural A-League season. The majority of its squad were experienced players from the defunct National Soccer League. They generally exceeded most expectations, having a very successful season, culminating in two solid displays in the preliminary competitions and reaching the grand final in the A-League.
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See also: List of Central Coast Mariners F.C. players.
| width=75 | Round ! | width=150 | Date ! | width=150 | Home Team ! | width=75 | Score ! | width=150 | Away Team ! | width=75 | Crowd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 30 March 2005 | Central Coast | 3-0 | Unknown | |||||||
| 2 | 14 April 2005 | Central Coast | 9-0 | Unknown | |||||||
| 3 | 19 April 2005 | 3-3 | Unknown | ||||||||
| 4 | 25 April 2005 | Central Coast | 3-0 | No public access | |||||||
| 5 | 27 April 2005 | Central Coast | 2-0 | Bonnyrigg White Eagles | Unknown | ||||||
| 6 | 8 July 2005 | Central Coast | 6-0 | Unknown | |||||||
| 7 | 9 July 2005 | 1-2 | Queensland Roar | Unknown | |||||||
| 8 | 12 July 2005 | Central Coast | 3-0 | Central Coast Select XI | 1500 | ||||||
| 9 | 16 July 2005 | Central Coast | 2-0 | Unknown |
The Mariners competed in Phillips International soccer sevens tournament played in Hong Kong. Their group featured three of the biggest teams in the world, PSV, Manchester United and Celtic. The Mariners caused one of the upsets of the tournament by defeating a somewhat understrength Manchester United 2–1.
| width=75 | Round ! | width=150 | Date ! | width=150 | Home Team ! | width=75 | Score ! | width=150 | Away Team ! | width=75 | Crowd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 May 2005 | HKF Association Chairman's Select | 2-1 | Central Coast | Unknown | ||||||
| 2 | 28 May 2005 | Central Coast | 2-0 | Hong Kong Football Club 2 | Unknown | ||||||
| 3 | 28 May 2005 | 0-0 | Unknown | ||||||||
| Quarter Final | 29 May 2005 | Central Coast | 2-1 | Unknown | |||||||
| Semi Final | 29 May 2005 | 0-1 | PSV | Unknown | |||||||
The Mariners were runners-up to Sydney FC in the qualifying tournament held to determine Australia's entry in the FIFA Club World Cup, losing in the grand final 1–0.
Group B
| width=150 | Team | width=20 | Pts | width=20 | Pld | width=20 | W | width=20 | D | width=20 | L | width=20 | GF | width=20 | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney FC | 7 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | ||||||||
| Central Coast | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | ||||||||
| Queensland Roar FC | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | ||||||||
| New Zealand Knights FC | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 9 |
See also: A-League Grand Final 2006.
| Player | Goals |
|---|---|
| Stewart Petrie | 8 |
| Dean Heffernan | 7 |
| John Hutchinson | 6 |
| Noel Spencer | 6 |
| Andre Gumprecht | 2 |
| Adam Kwasnik | 2 |