One last rumble with the neighbours! It’s sure to be a cracking F3 derby at the Bluetongue so get your ticket
Sunday 13th February 5:00pm
One last rumble with the neighbours! It-s sure to be a cracking F3 derby at the Bluetongue so get your ticket today and experience the drama live.
Yellow Army make some noise! Your team is warming up for it-s massive major semi-final showdown with Brisbane Roar, and what a warm-up it is set to be, as bitter rivals Newcastle Jets make up the opponents on Sunday. This clash is sure to be a Sunday arvo blockbuster at the Bluetongue, so secure your tickets and get ready to be part of the kind of atmosphere that only a local derby can create.
In the first derby tussle this season at EnergyAustralia Stadium, it ended all-square, but the psychological advantage went to Jets, as they clawed back a 1-0 deficit to pick up a point with a dramatic 92nd minute goal. And it was former Mariner Sasho Petrovski that sent the Squadron into raptures as he pounced on a loose ball at the death after Matt Simon had put the visitors ahead four minutes into the second half.
However, when Graham Arnold-s men returned there in January, they powered to a 2-0 win in front of 13,000 fans thanks to goals from Matt Simon and John Hutchinson. The win propelled them into second place for the first time in the Hyundai A-League 2010/11 season. It is a position that they haven-t let slip from their tight grip since.
Last weekend, Mariners grabbed a vital point in the harshest of conditions in Victoria. After heavy rain resulted in an 82-minute delay to kick-off, Graham Arnold-s side fell behind in the strangest of circumstances as, after 49 minutes, after Melbourne Heart defender Matt Thompson hit a speculative free-kick 15 yards inside his own half that fizzed off the wet surface and caught out teenage keeper Matt Ryan as he scrambled back towards his own goal-line and fumbled under pressure.
However, just sixty seconds after the ball apologetically crossed the line and left the talented stopper red-faced, the visitors were level, as Daniel McBreen scored his fifth goal of the season. The point may have handed ladder-leaders Brisbane Roar the Premier-s Plate but it still proved Mariners mettle; after all, paying in such conditions and falling behind to a horror goal could easily have resulted in defeat. Such spirit will serve them will in the finals.
Jets- season pretty much hit a full stop last weekend, as a home draw with Sydney left them with too much to do to make the top six. As with Mariners though, they showed fine spirit to come from behind and grab a 1-1 draw.
With local rivals Sydney taking the lead with just a quarter of an hour remaining through Brazilian Bruno Cazarine, Newcastle refused to drop their heads and levelled things up with six minutes left through veteran front-man Sasho Petrvoski.
Skipper Nikolai Topor-Stanley almost grabbed the points late on, but the game was destined to end in a result that did neither side any favours. In more positive news though, Topor-Stanley this week re-signed for the next two seasons.
There is nothing like a derby clash to bring the curtain down on the Hyundai A-League 2010/11 season, so why be anywhere else on Sunday night? Expect a huge, passionate crowd, plenty of representation from Newcastle Jets and a cacophony of noise from the home end.
Yellow Army, it-s the first time your local rivals have played at The Bluetongue this season, so it-s down to you to create the kind of atmosphere that will send them home with their tails between their legs. Sing to win!
