Central Coast Mariners striker Marcos Flores out for season after injury at training Finished: Mariners ace Marcos Flores will won't play again this season. Central Coast Mariners' hopes of defending their A-League title are in tatters, with star player Marcos Flores set to miss the rest of the season. Flores collapsed in agony during the final few moments at Mariners training on Thursday and is believed to have ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. If the injury is as serious as the club fears, it would rule him out until the next A-League season and sideline him for the club's Asian Champions League campaign. Scans will be undertaken on Friday when it is expected the damage will be confirmed. "I will be back, thanks for your support," the Argentinian playmaker said on Twitter. Mariners coach Phil Moss said the club began preparing for the worst outcome as soon Flores went down. It's just one of those things at training - he simply went to change direction. He planted his foot, his body weight went one way and his knee went the other," Moss said. Our initial diagnosis is not good and he's booked in for a scan tomorrow to confirm the full extent. But we're expecting he won't be back this season. The news is a big blow to the champions, who are still reeling from the pending departure of arguably their best player, Michael McGlinchey, to J-League side Vegalta Sendai. They have brought in former favourite Bernie Ibini on loan for the next six months from Shanghai East Asia but it means the club is down to bare bones for attacking talent, with Adam Kwasnik also out for the rest of the year. "This definitely changes my perspective in the transfer window and I can say now that we'll look to bring in one or two players," Moss said. The Mariners' front third will require significant adjustment, possibly with Daniel McBreen dropping into the No.10 role, though the much talked-about Anthony Caceres may finally get his chance to shine. "I believe Caceres is a real player of the future but I think he's ready for the present, too," Moss said. He's been very unlucky not to get more opportunities until now but I'm sure he will. He's been behind Flores, [Nick] Montgomery and [John] Hutchinson, understandably so given their experience, but we'll see more of him now. Unfortunately for the Mariners, there are few available players to fill the position at short notice. Former Socceroo Ryan Griffiths, recently returned to Australia from China, is one attacking candidate despite his links to local rivals Newcastle Jets. Inquiries will be made to Celtic to see if the Mariners can regain the out-of-favour Tom Rogic on loan in the January transfer window but Moss is expecting that to be a long shot. "Of course, if Tommy was available, I'd be answering my phone if that was brought to our attention," Moss said. But I know Arnie still wants to bring him to Sendai and we don't have purse strings to compete in that sense.