MARQUEE star John Aloisi will have to cool his heels on the bench for another week as Sydney FC coach John Kosmina prefers to take a "calculated risk" on Alex Brosque in tonight's derby match against the Central Coast Mariners at the SFS.

With pre-sales tracking at record levels, Sydney officials hope for a season-high crowd for a match which will reveal a lot about the title aspirations of two clubs bouncing off big wins against fellow contenders Melbourne Victory and Newcastle Jets respectively. But Aloisi will have to sit out the start as Kosmina keeps faith with Mark Bridge in the central striking role, and instead replaces the injured Brendon Santalab [shoulder] with another player with pace and natural width in Brosque. The decision suggests that, providing both players are available, Aloisi and Bridge might be competing for the same spot for the rest of the season.

Aloisi's chances of a start against his old club weren't helped by a nasty gash above his eye he picked up in a head clash at training with rookie defender Beau Busch - a factor Kosmina conceded played a part in his decision.

"Johnny's been in the wars - he's picked up 16 stitches in a head cut yesterday, and he left training early on Monday, he tweaked his knee, but it's all fine," Kosmina said. "But with that wound, maybe the sting needs to go out of the game before he puts his head into areas.

"I don't want to start him and he opens it up in the first five minutes. Having said that, maybe he's best served coming off the bench as an impact player, he proved that last week. And I thought 'Bridgey' did a good job for us in the first half in Melbourne."

Kosmina has largely kept faith with the team that did so well at the Telstra Dome, although Robbie Middleby aggravated a cyst behind his knee at training yesterday and is out. Shannon Cole is set for a recall.

The Mariners will continue with a three-man attack of Sasho Petrovski, Dylan Macallister and Matt Simon, with fit-again Socceroos midfielder Mile Jedinak the only change to a winning side.

Kosmina has counselled his players - especially rookies Busch and Antony Golec - to strive for consistency.

"In a lot of ways, last week was easy because you had a whole bunch of new faces in there with nothing to lose," Kosmina said. "This week they've got a reputation, and they've got to back it up … they wanted to play, now they've got their chance."

Kosmina admitted he was taking a chance recalling his top scorer, Brosque, from a hamstring injury but added: "He's probably a bit undercooked, but it's a calculated risk. We need some width and some speed out wide. Provided he pulls up all right at our session tomorrow morning, he'll definitely start."

Sydney's other wide attacker, Adam Casey, has recovered from a bug which forced him off the field in Melbourne, but not before he had made a huge impact in the opening period of the game last weekend.

With his confidence back, the worst of his injuries over, and a new two-year contract in his pocket, Casey intends to celebrate with another strong contribution against the Mariners.

"Obviously I've had a few injuries, but I've always had confidence in my ability when I have been playing," he said. "That [injuries] is the only thing which has hindered my progress. Last year I fractured my leg, and I was out for the rest of the season. Things like that happen in football. Freakish injuries like that don't help your career. But it's only made me hungrier to prove what I can do."

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