Two goals from Lauren Allan coupled with strikes from Sarina Bolden and Emily van Egmond helped Newcastle to a 4-2 win over Western United at No.2 Sportsground on Sunday afternoon.
Leading 1-0 at the break through Allan’s crisp strike, Newcastle found themselves pegged back early in the second-half care of a Chloe Logarzo penalty.
The impressive van Egmond then slotted her side back in front, finishing off a well worked move, however Western hit back almost immediately with a stunning goal from Stacey Papadopoulos.
In a game swinging from end-to-end, an incredible lob from Sarina Bolden made it 3-2 to the Jets before Lauren Allan’s late header wrapped up an impressive win for Gary van Egmond’s charges in Newcastle.
The away side controlled the early possession but it was the Jets who had the game’s first clear-cut chance through Allan.
After robbing Western of the ball on halfway the Jets sprang into life on the counter with Bolden releasing Allan in on goal but her deflected effort was tipped over the bar by goalkeeper Hillary Beall.
But while Allan came close to opening the scoring on that occasion she made no mistake when presented with another opportunity in the 25th minute.
Combining well with Hoban, Bolden spotted Allan’s run in-behind the Western defence and promptly played her teammate in on goal and the 27-year-old did the rest, curling a right footed shot across Hillary Beall and into the far corner.
Despite enjoying the lion’s-share of possession it took Western until the stroke of half-time to fashion their best chance and they should have been level.
Vacating the left wing in favour of a more central position, Adriana Taranto fizzed a quick ball out wide to Hannah Keane who then spotted a clever third-man run into the box from Melissa Taranto, however her low shot could only find the side netting.
Finishing the half strongly, Western came flying out of the traps in the second stanza and got themselves on the scoresheet less than 10-minutes after the restart.
Dispossessing Josie Wilson, Hannah Keane galloped forward and into the box and while her touch was a little heavy, she drew the foul from the on-rushing Isobel Nino and the referee pointed to the spot, with Western skipper Logarzo slotting the ball home to level the scores.
The Jets weren’t pegged back for long though and hit back in the 62nd minute through the ever-inspirational Van Egmond in what was the last appearance of her guest stint at the club.
The combination of Bolden and Allan worked wonders once more as the former played the latter in down the right hand side who in turn spotted van Egmond un-marked inside the box and the 139-time Matilda calmly placed the ball beyond Beall to make it 2-1.
Western though hit back almost immediately, and in some style, as defender Papadopoulos twisted and turned on the left edge of the box before curling a stunning effort over the head of Isobel Nino and into the top corner.
Remarkably just five minutes later the Jets regained the lead in this topsy-turvy contest and it was the lively Bolden who had the home crowd on their feet and for good reason.
A pinpoint long pass over the top from Van Egmond sent Bolden baring down on goal but the Philippines star spotted Hillary Beall off her line and instead of continuing her run, brilliantly lobbed the shot-stopper to send the crowd, and her teammates, into raptures.
The Jets then left the visitors in their wake just five minutes later with Van Egmond finding substitute Lorena Baumann, who clipped an inviting cross from the byline onto the head of the unmarked Allan at the back post and the points were safely in the bag.
The talking point
In a game that swung from end to end at break-neck speed in the second half it was a moment of individual brilliance from Jets forward Sarina Bolden that turned the game back in her side’s favour.
Her audacious lob over Western United keeper Hillary Beall in the 69th minute not only restored Newcastle’s lead but it also acted as another blow to the away side who were then tasked with finding an equaliser for a third time in the match, something that proved to be beyond them.
Sheer class from the Philippines international to help steady the nerves and secure Newcastle’s third win of the campaign.
The star
Whilst departing Matilda Emily van Egmond certainly put on a show in the final game of her guest stint back in the Liberty A-League, two-goal hero Lauren Allan had an outstanding game for the Jets.
Not only did she score two vital goals for her side in the 4-2 win but she also walked away having assisted van Egmond as well.
Allan was a constant attacking threat for the Jets, causing all sorts of problems with her runs beyond the Western backline and on another day could well have walked away with the match ball but, of equal importance, was her impressive defensive output which contributed to what was an all-action display.
What it means
A fourth win of the campaign for the Jets moves Gary van Egmond’s side up into fifth on the ladder and just three points behind Wellington Phoenix, who they play on December 23 in Round 9 of the Liberty A-League.
As for Western United, Kat Smith’s side drop below the Jets on the ladder into sixth spot and they face a tricky test next time out against title-challenging Perth Glory.
