Adelaide United crashed back to earth with a thud after winning the Westfield FFA Cup on Tuesday, going down 2-1 to the Jets in Newcastle.
With a host of players missing, including captain Kew Jaliens, the Jets were deserved victors and broke their 10 match winless streak with second half goals to Scott Neville and Jeronimo.
Third placed Adelaide must wait for the rest of the weekend’s matches to see where they stand on the table, while the Jets move level with the Mariners, who are yet to play, and four points ahead of the Wanderers who have two matches in hand.
What they said
“I’m really happy for the efforts of my teammates, it was a bad start for us so I’m really happy for our first win of the season and I hope more wins come. Thanks to the crowd and my teammates, we did work in preseason and I hope there will be many games like today.” – Jets striker Jeronimo
“Credit to the boys, we got back into the game and I think Newcastle had us in the first half, they pressed us and we couldn’t cope. The second half we came out and dominated in patches but personally very disappointed.” – Reds defender Nigel Boogaard
Goals
Jets 1-0 (49’) – Scott Neville: Adelaide cleared a corner just after the restart but Caravella lobbed a dangerous ball back into the box. Neville was the first to pounce on the loose ball and tapped it into the back of the net.
Adelaide 1-1 – Craig Goodwin (70’): Nice footwork and a great pass inside the box from substitute Mabil found Jeggo whose low cross was finished by Goodwin – a former Jets player.
Jets 2-1 (81’) – Jeronimo: Carney created space for himself on the edge of the box and sent a low chip to Jeronimo who swivelled and hit it first time to the back post.
Key moment
The game was meandering along before Neville’s opening goal put the Jets ahead. Adelaide upped the ante after going behind and threw everything at the Jets’ goal to create a more entertaining encounter.
Opta Data key stats
Adelaide strung together twice as many passes as Newcastle (528-258) with a greater accuracy (83.3%-73.3%) but continually muffed chances in front of goal. With 11 total shots, only four were on target for the Reds.
Forced to defend for long periods, the Jets made 100% of their 16 tackles.
Highlights reel
Newcastle had one real chance in the first half and it should have been a gimme. Carney created space for himself inside the box and chipped a nice ball across the face of goal. Hoole’s volley was saved at point blank range and the rebound landed at Montano’s feet, but his hurried shot hit Hoole and was cleared from trouble.
Ok, so not as much highlight as hilarious, but it was as good as the first half got.
Coach Killer
Were Jeggo and Goodwin offside when Adelaide equalised? It was a very close call. In the end it didn’t matter, but for a coach under the pump like Phil Stubbins, it was a scare he didn’t need.
Treatment table
Edson Montano landed awkwardly after jumping for a bouncing ball and was forced from the pitch in the 66th minute.
Eight minutes after Montano went off, Joel Griffiths stayed down and was worked on by the physio. He played on for another five minutes but was inevitably replaced.
Final Word
Teams
Newcastle: Ben Kennedy (gk), Benjamin Kantarovski, Scott Neville, Adrian Anthony Madaschi, David Carney (Jacob Pepper 84’), Andrew Hoole, Zenon Caravella, Allan Welsh, James Virgili, Joel Griffiths (c) (Mitch Cooper 78’), Edson Montano (Jeronimo 66’)
Adelaie: Eugene Galekovic (gk,c), Nigel Boogaard, Tarek Elrich, Craig Goodwin, Dylan McGowan, Marcelo Carrusca, James Jeggo, Isaias, Pablo Sanchez (Watson 77’), Sergio Cirio, Fabio Ferreira (Mabil 45’)
Scorers:
New: Neville (49’) Jeronimo (81’)
Adl: Goodwin (70’)
Red Cards:
None
Yellow Cards:
New: Hoole (19’), Virgili (24’)
Adl: Hoogaard (44’)
Conditions:
Warm and breezy.
Attendance:
10407
