Melbourne Victory will be cursing a series of missed opportunities following a disappointing 2-0 home loss to a sharp Newcastle Jets outfit on Saturday.
It was a critical result for both teams, as Newcastle now moves into mid-table alongside Melbourne with nine rounds remaining in the regular season.
Goals to William Angel and Fabian Iacovelli were decisive for the visitors while Victory-s Nathan Elasi also had a goal disallowed in a frustrating day for the home side at the Venuto Club.
Victory coach Mehmet Durakovic was left to ponder his side-s wasteful effort in the final third.
“It-s a really disappointing result for us,” he said.
“Especially because if we had have got the three points we could have moved to fourth, but to their credit they had two chances that they put away, and we had five or six and we didn-t score.”
“Our lack of finishing really cost us the game in the end.”
Both sides enjoyed their fair share of possession in the first half, with Victory being well served by skipper Aziz Behich and first-team regular Leigh Broxham who was returning from suspension.
For Newcastle skipper Taylor Regan and Brodie Mooy looked assured on the ball while custodian Dion Shaw was outstanding from the first whistle.
In the early stages of the second half it was to be a mistake by the Victory midfield that resulted in the opening goal for the visitors.
Craig Sweeny gave the ball away cheaply in the middle third and Newcastle-s Angel pounced to chip the Victory goalkeeper and deliver a shock lead in the 53rd minute.
Victory-s best chance at an equalizer was disallowed shortly after when the dangerous Elasi clashed with a Jets defender moments before putting the ball in the back of the net.
Melbourne-s celebrations were quickly shelved when the referee immediately deemed the contact illegal and awarded a free kick to the visitors.
The home side continued to push hard in the search of an equalizer, but were continually denied by young Jets ‘keeper Shaw, who pulled off a string of first-class saves.
The Newcastle defence held firm in the face of mounting Victory pressure, and when goalscorer Angel was substituted for Iacovelli in the 60th minute, it proved to be a turning point.
Iacovelli was involved in a scramble in the six-yard box, managing to get the important touch and seal a terrific win for the Jets in the 82nd minute.
Melbourne Victory 0
Newcastle Jets (Angel 53-, Iacovelli 82-)
