It sounds like the biggest match in Central Coast Mariners' history.

The four-time Grand Finalists have been part of some of football's greatest moments on Australian soil, but few might be aware that tomorrow night's Cup tie against Maitland FC is one of their biggest.

According to coach Alen Stajcic, at least.

Turns out every match the Mariners play from now on is going to be treated like "a final." 

But given the Mariners' recent history in the FFA Cup which has seen them falling at the first hurdle for years now, it's perhaps vital the club takes the game seriously.

It's an oft-used and abused cliche among coaches, but even then, it's rare that they hammer it this hard.

"We know how important tomorrow is," Stajcic began his pre-match press conference. "Every game is important for us.

"We've made that a major talking point of our team, that every friendly and FFA Cup fixture is a league game, we're going to be approaching them in the same manner.

"So regardless of the competition or the level of the match, again, whether it's a friendly or an island game, we're approaching it the same way," he repeated.

"You know, we'll be approaching it as if it's a final," he insisted.

"It's an important game for us," he said once again. "We haven't won in a long time.

"Here all the matches are very important."

After a 4-1 win against Manly United and a 5-0 win over Charlestown Blues to kick off their pre-season, it's hard to predict whether Stajcic is happy with the way his side are going...

"Certainly we're at a good point at the moment," he said. "It's important to get that team chemistry going and the team cohesion.

"We've done really well in both those matches, we've improved as the matches have gone on and we've improved as training has gone on as well.

"I'm really happy where we're at," he insisted. "I'm very happy with how we're going.

"The team's really bonded well, they're getting on well together off the field, on the field, the chemistry is getting there and the cohesion as I mentioned a little bit earlier.

"But you know, the things that matter the most are the actual matches. They give us a good report card on where we are five or six weeks into our preseason."

Stajcic has good reason to feel like the Mariners are on an upwards trajectory. They're not only in an upwards run of form, but welcoming two very promising - if inconsistent - subjects back into the ranks.

"Tommy Oar is almost like a new player," Stajcic said. "He's enthusiastic, he's energetic. He's desperate to start tomorrow. So you know, he's been putting in a lot of good work and training.

"We've had a lot of new players coming in, but even someone like Tommy, it's just good to get that fresh energy and enthusiasm back in the squad and he's really showing his desire to want to get back in the starting 11."

"I don't know what happened with Danny De Silva before, but I've always thought he was a good player.

"He's been touted as such a promising player from a very early age and I was saying that, even just watching as a fan, for many years.

"I'm really happy to have him, he is exactly the kind of player I like watching - that number 10, creative, skilful, can see the killer pass, can score goals and set up other people so and I'm sure he's going to be a great asset.

"He's obviously a key playmaker in the team. And as we know, in any team, the key playmaker is usually the most decisive player."