Central Coast boss Nick Montgomery says his players are motivated to bounce back from the Melbourne City defeat when they face Adelaide United on Saturday night.
The Mariners, who are on a poor run of form, sit second from bottom on the A-League ladder and could pick up the wooden spoon in the 2021/22 campaign.
Keen to bounce back
The Mariners were on the receiving end of two harsh penalty decisions caused by refereeing blunders when they lost 3-2 against City on Tuesday night.
They now have the chance to put it behind them and Montgomery says they will use the feeling of injustice to spur them on against Adelaide.
Related Central Coast Mariners news
Mariners left in disbelief after City loss
Mariners upbeat ahead of City test
Montgomery rues missed chances
Montgomery disappointed with dropped points
"Mentally it was a tough night for everybody but the boys are resilient," Montgomery told reporters on Friday. "Some things are totally out of your control, like they were on Tuesday night.
"So if anything, it gives us motivation to go to Adelaide and come back with a positive result."
Good spirits
Despite being at the wrong end of the ladder Montgomery says morale remains high in the camp as they look to get back to winning ways.
"The boys are in good spirits (but) obviously extremely disappointed from the last two games," Montgomery added. "But I think everyone can see the boys put in two great performances and were very unfortunate against Melbourne Victory.
"And words can't really explain what happened against Melbourne City but I think everyone else can see what happened and it was totally unjust. But we can't feel sorry for ourselves, we get up and we're looking forward to the game against Adelaide."
