(Reuters) – Central Coast Mariners advanced to the A-League final as Samuel Silvera and Marco Tulio scored second-half goals in a 2-0 home win over Adelaide United in Saturday’s semi-final second leg to secure a comfortable aggregate victory.
After an action-packed but goalless first half, the Mariners broke the deadlock in the 48th minute when Jason Cummings went on a driving run into the box before poking the ball to Silvera, who finished with ease.
Four minutes later, Tulio doubled the Mariners’ advantage after hammering home from a tight angle when the ball was parried into his path by Adelaide goalkeeper Joe Gauci.
Adelaide threatened to fight back as they dominated possession in the closing stages, but the Mariners held on to seal a 4-1 aggregate triumph.
Playing in their first final since Graham Arnold guided them to their one and only title in 2013, the Mariners will face Melbourne City in the final at the Western Sydney Stadium on June 3.
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
