“I believe in talent, I believe in kids”. That is what Rob Stanton told KEEPUP after his coaching bow resulted in a chaotic Australia Cup showdown with Melbourne Victory.
There were four debutants, while highly-rated local product Archie Goodwin got on the scoresheet as Newcastle Jets withstood a dramatic comeback from Victory to win 4-2 on penalties following a 2-2 draw at the end of 120 minutes of action in Darwin on Monday.
Clayton Taylor, Ryan Scott, Lachlan Bayliss and Daniel Wilmering all made their bows alongside Stanton – the former Sydney FC youth boss taking on his first senior head coaching role at A-Leagues level after plenty of success as an assistant with the Sky Blues.
After the Jets punched their ticket to the Australia Cup Round of 32 and set up a clash with Brisbane Roar, Stanton – who has replaced Arthur Papas – told KEEPUP: “They all did really well.
“They’re all young obviously but they’ve shown great attitude when they’ve turned up. they’re all looking to prove themselves. It’s the mentality and culture that I’m trying to create at the club that they fit well.
“All of them can flourish. I’m excited because those boys I have a feeling that over time they will be good players. At some stage, you have to expose them.
“We still have a balancing act with one or two more experienced players. That would help those players grow and develop more.
“(On Monday) we saw a lot of young players, so the onus was on them to do that themselves.
“I’m excited because I believe in talent, I believe in kids. The opportunity is there. It’s just about getting the right balance between winning games, developing and developing the club and team that the fans want to see.”
After Papas resigned in June, the Jets – who have not played finals football since 2017-18 – turned to Stanton to fill the void heading into 2023-24.
Both the Jets and Victory and young players on display, but it was Newcastle who stayed alive in the Australia Cup, despite surrendering a two-goal lead after conceding twice in stoppage time.
“Considering we did two-and-half weeks of training, there was a high risk to the game. I was pretty happy until we hit 90 minutes. Everything was working well, we were delivering some of the concepts and principles I was hoping to see,” Stanton said following a wild incoming as coach.
“We showed a bit of experience on game management. In the end we had to go another 30 minutes and penalties. With a young team, that showed up what we were missing – a bit of experience to close out the game.
“During the game, we managed parts of the game where I thought they offered some dangerous moments, we did a good job there. With the ball we showed some good moments too. Defensively we showed some good structure but things to work on too.
“It was good but you wouldn’t want to be playing those games every week… you soon wouldn’t be well (laughing).
“In the end, the result was what were after and now we have the chance to stay alive in a competition and build on that.”
The Jets seized the early advantage thanks to Trent Buhagiar in the 18th minute before Goodwin came off the bench to double the lead with 20 minutes remaining.
If there is one thing Jets fans love, it is a Novacastrian playing for the club. Goodwin is highly rated at McDonald Jones Stadium but the 18-year-old has been a peripheral figure in recent seasons.
After two goals in 169 minutes in 2021-22, he also found the back of the net twice in just 138 minutes (one start in eight appearances) last term and former boss Papas explained the reasons behind his absence, highlighting a lingering fitness issue.
He played 75 minutes of football against Victory – not something the Jets had planned – and scored a fine goal for the Jets.
“He had back surgery in the off-season, so we had to ease him in. This game he was good for 30-45 minutes,” Stanton said.
“When half-time came, I thought he was ready for 45. He came on and did exactly what he did. I saw opportunities for him at half-time. I’m not surprised he scored to be honest.
“The only disappointing thing was that it went another 30 minutes, so it put him back into a risk zone which I was concerned with. But in the end, the kid just managed himself well for those 30 minutes.
“I’m proud of him because he is only really young but he understood he needed to manage the next 30, which he did. For the 45, I thought he was excellent. With his movement, he showed a great change of pace.
“For the goal, he just reacts quicker than anyone else for an opportunity. He showed great intuition in the game there.
“I’m excited by him. I know the fans are. I just want to do the right thing by him so I give him the best opportunity for him to develop and the best way to do that is to expose him as much as I can in the right times.”
