Newcastle Jets star Brandon O’Neill and Perth Glory will reunite in the A-League Men on Saturday evening, but it is safe to say there is no love lost between the two.
There were high hopes when O’Neill returned to Australia via the Glory as captain on a three-year contract in 2021-22, however the two-time A-Leagues champion was granted an early release after just one season in Perth.
O’Neill cited “family reasons and the belief he is unable to perform to the best of his abilities while living in Perth” following a challenging campaign impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced the Glory to play outside Western Australia for almost the entire campaign.
Now at the Jets, O’Neill and the Glory will lock horns at McDonald Jones Stadium, where Perth’s head of recruitment Andy Keogh is keen to make a statement.
“Brandon O’Neill was the captain of the club and he left,” Keogh, who played alongside O’Neill, told The Football Fix.
“He decided to leave, he decided Newcastle was the better option, so we want to shove it right up him, to be honest. That’s a fact.
“We want to win the game, we want to win every game.”
O’Neill is not the only former Glory player at the Jets this season.
Callum Timmins, 22, and Daniel Stynes, 24, also made the move from Western Australia to Arthur Papas’ Jets in the Hunter Valley.
It makes for a tantalising Round 2-contest over the weekend, with the Glory not short on motivation.
Newcastle’s season-opener against Central Coast Mariners was washed out due to rain in Gosford, while the Glory were beaten 1-0 by Western Sydney Wanderers.
“Callum Timmins was different, we offered him a contract and he decided to leave based off probably bad advice from his agent, and Daniel Stynes we asked to leave because he didn’t fit into our plans and what we wanted to do,” Keogh added.
“We wish them of course all the best for the service they gave, but it is fiery. They did leave our club, they did leave our beautiful state of WA.
“They decided Newcastle was better, so obviously we want to show them they were wrong. Just like they want to show us they were right.”
