Newcastle Jets vs Central Coast Mariners Prediction: CCM up for Premiers Plate fight

Central Coast Mariners face Newcastle Jets at the McDonald Jones Stadium on Saturday knowing they could pick up the Australian A-League Men's Premiers Plate by the end of the game. There's much less on the line for the Jets, who can only move up one place to ninth, at best.

Below is my Newcastle Jets vs Central Coast Mariners prediction for this 08:15 kick-off, which will be shown live in the UK on TNT Sports 1.

It's been a pretty rough season for the Jets but there have at least been some positive results over the past month. They held Melbourne City to a goalless draw at AAMI Park on March 30 and subsequently enjoyed back-to-back wins over Sydney FC (3-1) and Brisbane Roar (2-0), before taking a point in a 1-1 draw with Wellington Phoenix last week.

The Mariners, meanwhile, haven't been in A-League Men's action since April 13 due to issues arising from their involvement in the AFC Cup. Mark Jackson's side drew 1-1 against Abdish-Ata in the first leg of their semi-final last week but ran into delays on their way back from Kyrgyzstan, forcing their fixture with Adelaide United to be postponed.

With two games left to play, CCM can collect a maximum of 55 points, while title rivals Wellington Phoenix can only reach 53 if they win against Macarthur FC on Saturday in a match that will run concurrently with the Mariners'.

If the Nix fail to win, the Mariners can claim the Premiers Plate with victory over the Jets. If the New Zealand club lose, just a single point for CCM will see them anointed winners of the regular season.

Team News

Jacob Dowse hasn't made a single A-League appearance for the Jets since joining from Perth Glory last summer, and injury will prevent him from doing so again on Saturday.

Mark Natta is back available for selection again, though, after the Olyroos' involvement at the AFC U23 Asian Cup in Qatar was brought to a premature end with a group-stage exit.

The Olyroos' failure to progress at the tournament has also acted as a boost to the Mariners, who have welcomed Jacob Farrell and Alou Kuol back to the fold, with both starting Wednesday's 3-0 win over Abdish-Ata.

Meanwhile, Football Australia has imposed a no-fault suspension upon star forward Angel Torres, who has scored 13 times in the league this term, after the Brazilian was charged with serious offences related to sexual assault by NSW Police, so he will miss Saturday's game.

Central Coast Mariners to win & under 3.5 goals @ 15/8

The Mariners know that a victory on Saturday could see them clinch first place if Wellington Phoenix fail to win themselves, so there is a huge incentive for them to try and take all three points in Newcastle.

The Jets have been on a good run recently but there is little for them to play for except pride.

21 points separate these sides in the table, and given the opportunity in front of CCM, the visitors should show their superiority here.

I don't envisage a glut of goals, however, with the Mariners' last eight A-League games seeing under four goals scored.

There haven't been too many in recent Jets games, either, with four of their last five matches finishing with two goals or fewer.

Half-time/full-time - Draw/Central Coast Mariners @ 4/1

The last meeting between these sides - at the same venue on March 3 - saw a goalless first half before Josh Nisbet struck a 75th-minute winner.

I can see another slow start this weekend, particularly given their efforts in midweek, with the Mariners prepared to play a waiting game in their search for victory.

Like their win in Newcastle last month, though, I expect the Mariners to come out on top in the second half.

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