NEWCASTLE Jets target man Sasho Petrovski says Central Coast know they made a mistake in not re-signing him and will be under pressure to keep him scoreless in tonight's derby clash at Bluetongue Stadium.
Petrovski will make his first A-League appearance against his former Mariners teammates since moving up the F3 Freeway to link with Newcastle in February.
The 34-year-old veteran signed with the Jets, because they were willing to offer him a two-year deal, as opposed to the one-season contract tabled in Gosford.
"I think they [the Mariners] know they made a mistake and there's nothing to prove, really," Petrovski said yesterday.
"I think the pressure will be on them, because they won't want to concede any goals and let me run riot down there.
"I know this is going to be a rough game. That's the kind of style they play.
"I just have to play my usual game, keep my head cool and steer clear of any of those silly incidents that occur in local derbies."
Petrovski said he harboured no ill feelings towards the Mariners and in hindsight felt signing with Newcastle was a move that could extend his career.
"I'm definitely grateful the Jets gave me the opportunity to keep playing for two years and I think I'll have a few more years after that," he said.
"There's nothing to prove to the Mariners. That is the direction they wanted to go.
"They had four quality strikers there and they had to release one, for some reason.
"Unfortunately that was me but it gave me an opportunity to move on and I'm enjoying the new challenge."
Petrovski, a crowd favourite during his two years at Bluetongue Stadium, was unsure what sort of reception he would receive tonight in enemy colours.
"Obviously I had some good memories there playing for the Mariners and have a lot of mates there," he said.
"It's a great stadium to play at and I really enjoy playing there.
"It [the crowd] will be nothing unusual, just typical sort of stuff while I am out there.
"It won't worry me anyway.
"My focus is to play well, have a good game and get a win for my new team."
Petrovski was kept scoreless in Newcastle's season-opening 3-2 win against Wellington but his career strike rate would suggest that spells danger for the Mariners.
"I'm pretty much on par for a goal, I think," he said.
"I had a quiet game last week, which is a bit rare for me.
"I think I was a bit flat last week but this week I'm feeling a lot sharper.
"And playing against the Mariners will definitely bring out the best in me."
Central Coast coach Lawrie McKinna has said Petrovski can be deadly in front of goal and has warned his players they "cannot switch off for one second".
"There will be nothing better for Sash than scoring against us," McKinna said.
"He'll be loving that.
"I'm sure that's what he'll be dreaming about when he goes to bed."
Jets coach Branko Culina said he was likely to stick with a similar line-up to round one but predicted the Mariners would be a step up in class.
"Central Coast beat Melbourne last week and we're playing away from home and it's a derby, so this will be a better test," he said yesterday.
"For those reasons, I think tomorrow's game will be tougher than last week.
"But I still think if you look at all the teams, we've got more improvement in us than any of the others."
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