Central Coast Mariners defender Zac Anderson believes the benefits of the Club’s participation in the 2013 Menpora Cup will become evident throughout Hyundai A-League 2013/14.
Central Coast Mariners defender Zac Anderson believes the benefits of the Club-s participation in the 2013 Menpora Cup will become evident throughout Hyundai A-League 2013/14.
The Mariners are currently in Bandung, Indonesia preparing to compete in the eight-team international invitational tournament, which kicks off on Friday when the 2013 Hyundai A-League Champions challenge 2012 Indonesian Super League winners Sriwijaya FC.
Graham Arnold-s men held their first training run on Indonesian soil on Tuesday afternoon, and following the hit-out at Siliwangi Stadion Anderson outlined that the Club-s pre-season tour to South East Asia ought to have a number of positive effects on the team moving forward.
“The first objective here is to get used to the humidity and the heat,” Anderson explained. “It-s obviously great that we can train in these conditions – it helps us prepare for the upcoming season in Australia.”
“And in terms of the group it-s really important for us to spend a lot of time together – it-s great to get away. We have such a tight-knight group but we love spending that time away.”
“The boys have settled in and we-ve had our first training session today, so it-s been a great experience so far.”
The benefits of Arnold-s boys bonding in Bandung cannot be underestimated, with no less than six new or, in the case of Matt Simon, returning recruits featuring in the Club-s 2013 Menpora Cup squad.
While each individual is understandably eager to impress the coaching staff throughout the pre-season, Anderson said that his focus is on doing what he can to ensure he is ready to help the team come Hyundai A-League season nine.
“My goal this year is to play as much football as possible, and help the team get to the goals that we want to get,” he said. “To do that each individual has to prepare themselves to help the team to get the ultimate goal.”
“As an individual I am just preparing myself as best as possible and working as hard as possible to help the team.”
Having enjoyed an uninterrupted pre-season thus far, Anderson will undoubtedly receive a number of opportunities in the heart of the Mariners- backline throughout the 2013 Menpora Cup.
As a highly regarded young professional, Anderson will be doing the little things right over the coming days to ensure he-s ready for action against the ‘Andalas Eagles- at Jalak Harupat Stadion.
“Our first game is on Friday so we-re just making sure that we-re acclimatised, and we-re sharp and fresh heading into that first match,” he said.
