The Newcastle Jets have received a boost ahead of their crucial Round 24 Hyundai A-League clash against Sydney FC with the news midfielder Adam D’Apuzzo has re-signed with the club.
D’Apuzzo, 23, had recently been rumoured to follow team-mates Matt Thompson and Jason Hoffman to new Hyundai A-League franchise Melbourne Heart, however the former Qantas Olyroo, who has aspirations to play overseas, felt it was more advantageous to sign on for another 12 months with the Jets.
“What I wanted to do was to see what would be the best for my development, Newcastle was always still part of the picture. I was always just taking time to think about what would be best for my football and I think another year in the A-League would be best,” D’Apuzzo said.
“We’ve got a great bunch of boys here, I’m happy with the staff, the coaching staff, everyone’s very supportive of each other and especially with the facilities here, we pretty much train on a bowling green with the gym around the corner, so I’m happy to be here.”
Newcastle head coach Branko Culina said he was delighted to retain the talented defensive midfielder alongside other recent re-signings including Michael Bridges, Tarek Elrich, Labinot Haliti, Marko Jesic, and Ben Kennedy, and said the signings speak volumes for the belief in the future of the club.
“I think it was important for Adam to have a clear mind of what he wanted to do and that’s all we were asking Adam to decide,” he said.
“It’s good that there was interest (in him) from other clubs, it shows he’s valued and he’s very much a player in demand, but it’s also terrific for the club that he has decided to stay with us.”
D’Apuzzo has been named in a 17-man Jets squad to face F3 rival Sydney FC on Sunday.
Newcastle will be without goalkeeper Neil Young, who has just had surgery on the broken nose he received from Shane Smeltz’s boot in last week’s 2-0 loss to Gold Coast.
Kennedy will start in goals with National Youth League glovesman Dion Shaw on the bench.
Strikers Haliti and Sasho Petrovski also return to the fold for the pivotal match against the Sky Blues.
“The Sydney game is a vital game for us in many ways,” said Culina.
“If we get the desired result, it will seal a finals spot for us which first and foremost is important for us. Then we’ll take it from there, but if you do win the game, other than sealing your finals spot, you’re still in the running of possibly making the top two.”
