Newcastle Jets head coach Rob Stanton has praised the performance of young star Archie Goodwin and believes he’s now ready to command a starting spot in the Jets’ side.
The 19-year-old came off the bench to help Newcastle snatch a 2-2 draw with Macarthur FC, scoring their first goal before playing a part in their second as they twice came from behind to seal a point.
“The week before I had to leave him out, he had a little niggle,” revealed Stanton in his post-match press conference. “He was looking a little bit tired so I was getting a bit concerned. I think the week off did him the world of good.
“Then he came back really quickly which was great so it means his body is starting to come around to getting used to the training loads and things like that.
The Jets have remained cautious this season when it comes to deploying the 19-year-old as he continues to recover from a series of back injuries.
However under Stanton the young Socceroo is now playing regular first team football at the Jets, getting another 31-minutes against the Bulls in a game where he came off the bench to bag his second goal of the season.
“I just knew that if I brought him on at some stage he’d do something,” said Stanton. “He looked a lot fresher too.
“I’m really happy that he scored, it was a real instinctive run and finish. A really aggressive action which I was really pleased with and he came on at the right time.
“I just knew that he had to come on. I was contemplating at half-time whether to do it…”
Goodwin’s goal, combined with his quick-thinking which led to the Jets’ second ultimately helped Stanton’s side secure a hard-fought point at McDonald Jones and with a mouthwatering F3 Derby against the Mariners next on the schedule, the question was asked whether or not we could finally see Goodwin picked in the starting side.
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“Look, there’s some areas of his game we want to improve because he had two, three years where he’s had a lay off,” said Stanton in response to talk of Goodwin potentially starting against the Mariners.
“So just some of his roles and responsibilities that we need to work through but he gets that as well. I thought today was really good.
“I’ll certainly have a big think about what we do next week and if he’s ready to start or whether we bring him on to change the game again.
Newcastle boss Rob Stanton on whether Archie Goodwin could start in the upcoming F3 Derby
He continued: “It’s a tough one but we’ll see how the week pans out but I’m happy. I’m happy for him because I know he’s been working hard and it was a good goal too.”
The Jets head into the game with their fiercest rivals desperately seeking a win having not tasted victory in their last five matches, a run which has left them sat second-last on the ladder and now eight points out side the finals positions.
