Newcastle skipper Matt Thompson is hoping Friday night’s home match against Adelaide will spark a form reversal as the Jets head into the 2009/10 Hyundai A-League finals.
The Jets were pressing for a top two spot just a few weeks ago, but consecutive losses to Sydney, North Queensland and the Central Coast has seen Newcastle slide down to sixth place on the ladder.
The Newcastle club will be have to overcome its dramatic form slump as well as the disadvantage of playing its finals campaign away from home, but Thompson is confident Friday night’s home match against Adelaide will be the spur the team needs to rediscover its winning mid-season form.
“This looks like it will the last home game, so it would be nice to go out with three points and obviously better our chances of pushing further up the ladder,” he said.
“We want to go out there and show the fans that we mean business and we want to show them appreciation for the year.”
“It wasn’t exactly a great year, there have been ups and downs definitely and we want to show our thanks for them coming out every game.”
Thompson, who has signed with new franchise the Melbourne Heart next season, said he won’t be getting sentimental after the completion of Friday night’s match despite starting in the A-league as a Jets foundation player and captaining the side for the past two seasons.
“I’ve been here for five years, this is a second home to me and I’ve enjoyed my time here,” he said.
“I definitely want to go out a winner, it looks like this won’t be my last game this year but it looks like it might be my last one here.”
“I plan on playing a few more games after this one, so maybe the tears will come in five or six weeks.”
“To be honest, I haven’t really thought about leaving. I plan on playing a few more games.”
Thompson, who has played 118 A-League games more than any other player in history, will lead a depleted Jets side with the news midfielders Jobe Wheelhouse (groin) and Jin-Hyung Song (hamstring), striker Sean Rooney (calf) and defender Nikolai Topor-Stanley (hip) will all be sidelined due to injury, while striker Labinot Haliti will sit out the match through suspension.
Newcastle’s youth team members Mirjan Pavlovic and Scott Balderson have been added to the squad to face the Reds.
“I’m sure we’ll find out what’s going on tomorrow (in terms of selection) but whatever team goes out there is going to want a win,” assured Thompson.
