Entries Tagged 'Newcastle Jets' ↓

Pedestrian. Lethargic. Boring.

A shade over 15,000 came out to watch 90 minutes of the dullest football I’ve ever seen at the Dome. It all went wrong about three minutes in when Billy Celeski went down and stayed down. No Celeski. No Hernandez. The only bright spark for me was Matthew Kemp, who was in fine form after a couple weeks away. And Archie’s goal was nice.

But beyond that, this was a night to forget about.

I may not be the world’s greatest strategist, but Ernie Merrick’s substitutions on Friday night made no sense to me. Perhaps I’m missing the big picture. But if you’re down two goals at half time, then concede a third five minutes in, surely that’s an ideal time to bring on some fresh attacking legs? No?

Instead, Merrick waited until after the 60th minute (his trademark time to make a substitution), after Melbourne had finally scored. But by then, the Jets had already scored a fourth, and Melbourne needed a goal every five minutes or so to get anything out of the game. A tall order for any side.

The game started well enough. Newcastle had practically no attacking momentum, as Melbourne created chance after chance. An Archie Thompson goal was disallowed for his being offside – a decision shown to be wrong by the replays. But you still got the feeling that it was just a matter of time before Melbourne finished one of their chances and took the lead.

It didn’t turn out that way. Newcastle, in what seemed to be their first attack of the game, opened their scoring when Matt Thompson headed in what would be the first of three he’d score. As soon as the Jets took the lead, they also grabbed the momentum. Suddenly, it was all Newcasle, with Melbourne obviously on the back foot.

It was a game that ran away from us. Newcastle didn’t start strong, but they surged after they scored. Trailing, Melbourne looked stale. As has so often been the case this season, they looked clueless in the final third, a team that’s worked out how to pass it around the box but can’t figure out how to get a shot off.

The loss has made Melbourne slip below the Queensland Roar on goal difference, while Wellington and Central Coast trail by a point (though they have both played one more game than Melbourne and Queensland). Adelaide United, which had another bye this week, remains at the top of the table with a game in hand.

The Newcastle Jets will attempt to inject pride (and a small dose of hope) into their cascading A-League campaign tonight, as they meet second-placed Melbourne Victory. But it’s a critical game for the visitors, who are a point behind Adelaide and need a win to regain the lead.

Adding to the pressure for Melbourne are the Queensland Roar, who are on equal points, and the Central Coast Mariners, who trail the Victory and Roar by a point. It’s very tight in there, but it’s deceptive: Melbourne have a game in hand.

Newcastle’s recent form has been disastrous. The Jets haven’t won since Round 8 – incidentally, that was against Melbourne. On that occasion, Newcastle were clearly the better team, but have struggled to maintain decent form since them. They now sit on 12 points at the bottom of the table, with 7th placed Perth Glory on 16.

Archie Thompson is a 50% chance to play tonight, while Ernie Merrick has Evan Berger and Carlos Hernandez back at his disposal. It’s a full strength squad bar one, but that one player missing is arguably the most significant cog in the system. A fortnight ago against Perth Glory, Melbourne had chances but didn’t take them; the week before that, Thompson had an off game and Melbourne looked pathetic in the final third as a result. Archie’s presence and form remains a key component of Melbourne’s set-up.

My tips for the weekend:

• Wellington Phoenix to beat Central Coast Mariners. Two sides with everything to play for, but the Phoenix are at home and in desperate need of a win. An embarrassing loss and a draw last week have it on 19 points, chasing the 4th placed Mariners by 3 points. They’ve beat the Mariners before, and I think they’ll do it again tonight.
• Newcastle Jets to collapse before the Melbourne Victory. Both have had poor games lately, but a week’s rest and an almost full squad give Melbourne no excuses. They need a win, and I think they’ll get it.
• Sydney FC to draw with Perth Glory. Perth need a win to keep their finals chances alive, and Sydney need one to get back into the top 4. I don’t think either will get what they need.

An impressive Newcastle Jets side scored a 1-0 victory over Melbourne on Saturday night.

The Victory finished the game with ten men after Archie Thompson was shown a straight red for swearing at the ref. Again, Melbourne played its best football when it was down a man; until that point, Newcastle looked to be well in control of the game.

In the end, it was a well deserved win for the Jets, and a well deserved goal for nineteen-year old Marko Jesic, who was pulled up from the Newcastle youth team for the occasion. With Joel Griffiths warming the bench for most of the game, young Jesic looked like the Jets’ most dangerous player.

Luckily, Melbourne retains top spot after Perth Glory and Wellington Phoenix both won their matches. But next week, Melbourne has to face Sydney FC without Archie Thompson, as it did in round 1. Without Thompson and Fabiano, Ernie Merrick’s attacking stocks are looking depleted.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAO3MePyEpo[/youtube]

Sydney FC missed its golden opportunity to overtake Melbourne at the top, losing 2-1 to Perth Glory (their second win of the season). Wellington also got their second win, beating the Central Coast Mariners in Gosford by a solitary goal. Adelaide United continued their great form with a win on the road against Queensland Roar, putting them on level points with Melbourne.

Gary van Egmond and the Newcastle Jets have a chance for revenge tomorrow night when they host the Melbourne Victory. In round 3, when these two teams first met, Melbourne did to Newcastle what the Socceroos did to Qatar: thrashed them.

Newcastle are sitting sixth on the ladder, a solid three points away from the fourth-placed Central Coast Mariners. Joel and Adam Griffiths return for the Jets tomorrow, both having recovered from their injuries. Youngsters James Holland and Ben Kantarovski make their comebacks after completing their international duties.

Melbourne also has a number of players returning to the fold: Michael Theoklitos and Carlos Hernández are both back from suspension, while Michael Thwaite appears to have recovered from his injury. Back to the bench for Mitch Langerak, Tom Pondeljak and Steven Pace, all of whom had strong performances against the Perth Glory a fortnight ago.

Last time we played Newcastle, I tipped “utter destruction”. I’m going to be a little bit more reserved this time and just tip a solid 2 goal win.

My tips for the weekend:

• Queensland Roar to beat Adelaide United narrowly. Both teams are on a roll at the moment, but I think the Roar should make their home advantage count for them.
• Newcastle Jets to suffer a slightly more dignified loss to the mighty Melbourne Victory than last time. Maybe 1-3, perhaps 0-2. I’m not too fussed really.
• Perth Glory to lose to Sydney FC. While I’d love to see Perth inject some life into their season, I’m afraid Sydney are going to swamp them this weekend. Who knows, maybe John Aloisi will get his first goal in Sydney colours.
• Central Coast Mariners to beat Wellington Phoenix. Wellington have pulled four points out of their last two games, but I’d be surprised to see them get anything in Gosford.

We’re four rounds into the A-League, and Kaz Patafta is yet to appear for his new club, the Newcastle Jets. All this after the youngster left Melbourne in search of regular game time.

So has Gary van Egmond’s decision to keep Patafta out of the squad vindicated Ernie Merrick’s decisions regarding Patafta last year?

Wow. Well that settles that. Three strikers on at a time is a good idea. A very good idea.

The match started lively enough, with both sides looking evenly matched. An injury to Michael Thwaite forced Ernie Merrick to make an early substitution. With no defenders to pick from, Merrick chose the most daring option: Archie Thompson. What a good move that was!

Ney Fabiano and Danny Allsopp led the pack, as Archie roamed around behind them, combining with Billy Celeski and Carlos Hernández to drive the Victory’s attack. Played behind the front two, Archie had the most effective game I’ve seen him have since the Grand Final against Adelaide United. If Merrick was wondering whether a line-up featuring Allsopp, Fabiano and Thompson could work, he has his answer.

Besides Archie, two other players stood out to me: Evan Berger and Billy Celeski. With Thwaite forced to sub off, Berger fell back into defence. Up against the very dangerous Jin-Hyung Song, the 21-year old did the job he had to do, and did it well. Celeski, meanwhile, seemed to shift to a more central role as Jose Luis Lopez also dropped back, and the Olyroo gave a solid performance in the centre of the park.

There is now a one-week break for World Cup qualifiers. Hopefully, it will be long enough for Michael Thwaite to recover from his injury. Besides him, Sebastian Ryall, Nick Ward and Daniel Vasilevski are all set to make their return. Only question is, why would Merrick want to tinker with last night’s line-up?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6oOhpRZ47s[/youtube]

The Melbourne Victory will have its first home game of the season tonight when it hosts the Newcastle Jets at Telstra Dome at 8pm.

Last year’s Grand Finalists are lucky to have two points to their name this season, having scored a late equaliser in both their matches so far. Melbourne’s form, meanwhile, has been much more reminiscent of the latter stages of last year, with a solid 4-2 victory over the Wellington Phoenix and a scoreless draw against Sydney FC giving them the top spot on the ladder after two rounds.

Tonight may see the first appearance of Archie Thompson in A-League season 4. A starting spot is unlikely for the Socceroo-come-Olyroo, but chances are high we’ll see our highest ever goalscorer come on as a substitute in the second half.

Jose Luis Lopez is also available, although he will be leaving Melbourne right after the game for Costa Rican national duty. Carlos Hernandez has not been called up; nor have any of our Aussie players.

My tips for the weekend:

• Melbourne Victory to utterly destroy the Newcastle Jets. Not an inch of bias to that tip, although I would be equally happy with a narrower victory. Just don’t let Newcastle grab one back in the last minute.
• Adelaide United to beat Wellington Phoenix. I had high hopes for Wellington after the Pre-Season Cup, but the New Zealanders have looked a bit short of the mark in their first two games – at home, no less.
• Sydney FC and Perth Glory to finish a draw. Perth Glory, meanwhile, have surprised me. Unlucky to end up with a draw last weekend, I reckon they’ll manage a draw away against a Sydney side missing some key players.
• Queensland Roar to beat the Central Coast Mariners. The Mariners lost to Sydney last week, and I’m tipping they’ll do it again this week, against a Queensland Roar side boasting a strong front line, with Charlier Miller and Sergio van Dijk looking like great imports.

The Newcastle Jets have turned their eyes to Melbourne in search of new players to add to their title-defending squad.

Joe Keenan is on a three-day trial with the Newcastle Jets, according to The Herald:

The 25-year-old has a season to run on a two-year deal in the Victorian capital, but coach Ernie Merrick has opened the way for him to move on.

Keenan’s departure will pave the way for Melbourne to sign another foreign player, likely to be Costa Rican defender José Luis López.

Antun Kovacic is also on trial with the Jets. Some Victory fans may remember the Richmond defender for his brief addition to the squad in season 1 as an injury replacement.

Newcastle have also been touted as a possible destination for Kaz Patafta, who has severed ties with Benfica FC.

And just to round things off, another former Victory player has been talking with Jets coach Gary Van Egmond. Ljubo Milicevic, it appears, has not been able to find a new club since he parted ways with the Victory in February.

Hey Gary, you want to check out Leandro Love as well?

It seems the A-League has caught the attention of Parliamentarians. Found this via the MVFC forum last week. Enjoy:)

Sharon Grierson MP

Federal Member for Newcastle

19 February 2008

PARLIAMENTARY ADJOURNMENT SPEECH

NEWCASTLE JETS & ENERGYAUSTRALIA STADIUM

Ms GRIERSON (Newcastle) (7.35 p.m.) – Mr Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate you on your elevation to the speakership. I did have a previous opportunity but at the time, in question time, you were being so stern and there was such a profound silence in response that I did not like to spoil the moment. As much as I miss sharing a bench in this chamber with you, and I miss your wise counsel, sharp wit and great humour, I am so proud that it is being shared with the Australian public. The question time tragics in my electorate are telling me that they very much appreciate the new style of the new Speaker.

It is grand final time in the A-league and I am proud to inform the House that on Sunday evening the Newcastle Jets will play the Central Coast Mariners in the grand final. I notice that the member for Robertson, a rival in this, is here and I am sure she is supporting her team. While we have made the finals in each of the three years of the A-league competition, this is our very first grand final. Last year the member for Hindmarsh’s team knocked us out; I enjoyed very much watching that game with him in Adelaide. So in Newcastle we are abuzz with excitement. That we have reached this point is a tribute to the owner, Con Constantine; the club’s executive and staff; its coach, Gary van Egmond; and all of its wonderfully talented players, not to mention the dedicated fans. On the weekend, former Socceroo Craig Foster wrote that the Jets, along with Queensland Roar, were the best teams to watch this season – a fine tribute to our young squad, from a great of the Australian game.

The city of Newcastle has got right behind our Jets in the three years of its existence, and it is great that we now have two teams – the Jets and the Knights – competing at the highest level, in two national football codes and receiving such wonderful support. Like thousands of Novocastrians, I am looking forward to travelling to Sydney on Sunday to cheer them home. But also like many thousands of Novocastrians, I will miss the home-ground atmosphere. Like them, I was also very disappointed that, had we qualified first for the grand final, we would not have had the opportunity to host the grand final at our home ground – EnergyAustralia Stadium – because our stadium’s capacity, currently around 24,000, is just not sufficient for a grand final crowd. It is also not big enough to host Asian Cup or World Cup matches, which require 40,000 seats – competitions which Australia has indicated it may bid for in the near future. It would be a tragedy for our region if we were to miss out on those opportunities because our stadium still is not up to international standard.

I was first elected into this place in 2001, and I continually lobbied the former government for federal assistance to help upgrade our stadium. Ten thousand signatures on a petition were lodged, but not one cent was forthcoming for Newcastle. I am pleased to report to the House that the Rudd government is following through with its commitment at the last election to contribute $10 million to help create several thousand more seats at EAS.

We expect this funding to become available in April or May this year and I would be very surprised if it is not spent already. Adding to the state government’s recent funding, we are now moving forward after 10 years of neglect by the Howard government. I hear the member opposite saying ‘pork-barrelling’. I remember the former Treasurer’s team, the former Prime Minister’s team and the team of the former member for Lindsay, Jackie Kelly – and I remember quite a few announcements of stadium funding, but none for Newcastle. I will keep working with my colleagues in government, with the Hunter International Sports Centre Trust and with the community to make sure more funding becomes available to build the new western grandstand we would all so dearly love to see. In the past we have missed out on hosting Rugby World Cup matches. An economic study done by the local university shows that we have missed out on $130 million in economic activity that it is estimated a redeveloped stadium would bring in.

The city of Newcastle now boasts two codes and two top-ranking teams – the Jets and the Knights – using the stadium year round. I congratulate the Knights on their victory in the opening trial game for the 2008 season, and our Jets have qualified for the Asian Champions League in 2009. We really do want to be part of the Asian and World Cup bids in 2015 and 2018. I will be cheering the Jets home in Sydney on Sunday, and hoping the member for Robertson is not quite as happy as I am on the day, and I will keep working towards the day when we can cheer them home in a grand final at EnergyAustralia Stadium – and when we can cheer on the Socceroos in international matches held at EnergyAustralia Stadium.

The SPEAKER – I simply say to the honourable member for Newcastle that while the chair is supposed to be benevolent in most matters, within the A-league there is only one victory—a Melbourne Victory.

Source: Hansard