Interim Perth Glory coach Kenny Lowe has heaped praise on his young side following their brave 1-0 victory over the Newcastle Jets at Hunter Stadium on Saturday.
Interim Perth Glory coach Kenny Lowe has heaped praise on his young side following their brave 1-0 victory over the Newcastle Jets at Hunter Stadium on Saturday evening.
Glory speedster Chris Harold scored the sole goal in the 38th minute after he intercepted a wayward back-pass from makeshift full-back Jacob Pepper before slotting past Jets custodian Mark Birighitti.
“I think in the manner they did it, you’ve got a bunch of young boys, all of our senior players are out – even Burnsy (captain Jacob Burns) was out today. We’ve got seven senior players out of the team,” Lowe said.
“(Newcastle forward) Adam Taggart’s probably the same age as some of the boys that we had but he’s got more league games than all of them put together.
“You’ve really got to take credit and give it to those kids – they rolled over, they delayed the game, they were utterly and totally professional.”
The Jets enjoyed a glut of gilt-edged opportunities in the second half as they dominated possession but a determined and well organised Glory defence desperately kept them at bay.
Glory goalkeeper Danny Vukovic was a standout for the visitors, pulling off a stunning save from a Nathan Burns free-kick and clearing a Kew Jaliens volley off the line.
Some Jets players felt the ball had crossed the line from Jaliens’ effort but Lowe remained philosophical when quizzed on the issue.
“I don’t believe the ref gave it so it couldn’t have been over the line,” he said.
“Last week we had 96th minute and the ref sent somebody sent off and he put in his report that he didn’t know why he sent him off.
“It’s a funny game isn’t it, last week it was us, this week it’s (Jets coach) Gary (van Egmond), next week it will be somebody else. You just roll with it, smile, take it on the chin and have some fun at the next game.”
Despite recording his first victory as Glory coach, Lowe dismissed suggestions that he was a relieved man, insisting he was simply enjoying the challenge for what it is.
“I’m having an absolute ball working with these players. I enjoy it. You go on the training ground you have some fun, you try and implement things and it’s special when it comes off,” he said.
“There’s no load off for me, what’s the worst I can do, go back to engineering and earn a load of money.
“It’s football – you’ve got to be balanced, stay calm, enjoy the ride, see where the journey takes you and hopefully have some fun along the way.”
