Newcastle Jets coach Gary Van Egmond says the long-term outlook is positive for the club despite a late-season stumble which saw his side miss the finals.
Newcastle Jets coach Gary Van Egmond says the long-term outlook is positive for the club despite a late-season stumble which saw his side miss the finals.
One point from a possible nine to end the season meant the Jets went from a likely finals berth to being bumped from a top-six position on the final day of the campaign.
Despite needing just a draw to progress, the Jets turned in an erratic first half performance to trail Sydney FC 3-1 at the interval, before a late Jobe Wheelhouse set up a thrilling finish.
The result saw the Sky Blues leapfrog their opponents leaving the Jets in seventh for the second consecutive season.
Despite cutting an animated figure on the sideline throughout the match, Van Egmond was in far more phlegmatic mood post-match, refusing to focus on the final match of the season as the reason for their failure.
“You can look at this individual game, but it is a whole season of trying to reach the six,” Van Egmond said.
“A few individual mistakes where players didn’t get into the right position on a defensive note,” said Van Egmond, when asked what went wrong against Sydney.
“We also didn’t do a great deal with the ball when we got into good areas.”
Despite the unavailability of former England striker Francis Jeffers, who woke on matchday with a swollen thigh, Van Egmond said his side maintained their attacking intent.
“We went for the win right from the start,” he said. “We looked to push on a little bit more so that is what we were doing as far as the formation was concerned.”
Despite the lack of finals football, Van Egmond, who only took the reins a few weeks into the season, says there is much cause for optimism.
“I think we are in a much better position that at the start of the season.
“In terms of points and getting into finals, it is not a successful season. In the way we started to play the game, the way younger players have come through and developed, I think that is all positives.
“It’s a case of getting ourselves into that position (top six). We got ourselves from, I think ninth at one stage, into the six, but then you have to maintain it. So that that is something we can become better at as a culture, and as a group.”
The Jets boss was reluctant to be drawn on changes to squad personnel during the off-season, with nine players coming off contract. Another variable is the unclear status of the long-term injury to marquee player Jason Culina.
“We will do some recruitment in the off-season. We will discuss that (recruitment) in the next week or two. I think up front is an area we can look at.”
Van Egmond did however say there would not be further significant changes to the team’s playing style.
“We will look to build on what we have done this year and keep trying to improve the performance.”
