Socceroo Mile Sterjovski watch the pantomime from the stands and McKinna admitted he was keen to sign the out of contract star to boos the Mariners next season.

But he let fly at Tianjin after the visitors took play-acting to a new level by feigning injury and rolling around the Bluetongue Stadium turf in mock agony.

The small crowd reacted angrily to the Tianjin's tactics, booing the team from the ground.

"It's a farce. They made a mockery of it. They killed the last 10-15 minutes of the game," McKinna said. "If that's Asian football, that's terrible. It's terrible for the fans. It's terrible for anyone who watched it."

Tianjin Teda coach Zuo Shusheng denied his players were guilty of playacting as the game went into five minutes of added time.

"We never plan these kinds of things. We were all the time promoting fair play and the positive way of playing football," he insisted.

But McKinna was unconvinced, declaring: "They were winning the game and I don't think there's any need to do that.

"That kind of stuff just brings the game down, and especially because the Australian public is not used to that kind of stuff."

The loss signalled the end of a dismal ACL campaign for the Mariners, but McKinna believes it can be the beginning of a fresh start at the club.

The Mariners have parted company with Andre Gumprecht, Paul O'Grady, Greg Owens and Nick Rizzo and are chasing several new players.

They are hoping to add Sterjovski to their roster after he watched last night's game at Bluetongue but may have been unimpressed by what he saw.

"There's interest but there are another two or three Asian clubs and A-League clubs and still some interest in Europe for him," McKinna admitted

"So there's still a long way to go but that type of player would be a huge asset to the club. On and off the field he's a true professional."

The Mariners have also been linked with Sheffield United's 22 year old midfielder Nicky Travis.