Newcastle Jets midfielder Kasey Wehrman believes his side is just starting to ignite following a tumultuous pre-season and uncertain start to the season.
Newcastle Jets midfielder Kasey Wehrman believes his side is just starting to ignite following a tumultuous pre-season and uncertain start to the season.
Despite major off-field turmoil leading up to the start of the season with the loss of their marquee player in Jason Culina and the sacking of his father and head coach Branko Culina, the Jets have made their best ever start to a Hyundai A-League campaign with two wins from their first three matches to be sitting in third place on the table.
Wehrman said last Sunday’s gritty 1-0 victory over arch-rivals the central Coast Mariners in the F3 derby at Ausgrid Stadium showed the Jets are regaining their match fitness and focus.
“We haven’t been playing that well to start with but to play well you need stepping stones and work rate,” he said.
“At the moment we have got to a stage in the game against the Mariners, which was lacking in the game the week before against Wellington, where we have said ‘we have to that 100 per cent work rate and give ourselves that platform.”
“So that is finally becoming imbedded back in our play and hopefully we can take that through and we can get more fitness and more play out of the team.”
The Jets outplayed the Central Coast in the first half and then showed plenty of guts to defend against a desperate Mariners outfit in the second half, as the visitors launched a raft of attacks on the Newcastle goal.
“It was grinding and we pressured them into their mistakes and we gambled a little it more and we were at home, so why not.”
“We are patient and we had the crowd behind us and they pushed us over the line in the end.”
Wehrman said he has welcomed the appointment of new coach Gary van Egmond and said he looked forward to working with the former Socceroo, but stressed that the onus was on the players to perform.
He also reserved special praise for interim coach Craig Deans, who took over the coaching reins just four days before the start of the season and helped guide the team to two wins from their opening three matches.
“He (Deans) didn’t make any changes or employ different tactics, but he came in and he has a cool, laidback attitude and that immediately calmed the dressing room down,” Wherman said.
“He just kept it simple and we got on with training focusing on the games and he has done a good job.”
“And the club has done well and we have been blessed that we have put in the work and effort and got six points despite a disrupted start to the season.”
“The coaches are there to prepare players make but at the end of the day it is those 11 players that are on the pitch at the given time that have the responsibility of getting the results.”
