Newcastle Jets boss Phil Stubbins insists he is the right man to rebuild the struggling club following his side’s frustrating 2-0 loss to Perth Glory at a sodden Hunter Stadium on Easter Monday.
The Jets controlled large periods against the Glory but were made to pay for some woeful finishing, with Andy Keogh and Nebo Marinkovic netting second-half goals for the visitors.
Wrap: Newcastle Jets 0 Perth Glory 2
“We are rebuilding the club… We’re trying to do everything we can behind the scenes to build the club and hopefully this time next year we’re in a very strong position,” Stubbins told reporters post-match.
“We’ve had five years of struggle at the club. We’ve made some changes but ultimately when we get ourselves a squad put together for next pre-season, then we’ll see a different Newcastle Jets take the field.
“We’ve been in a helluva lot of games without really getting any return for it. We look forward to the opportunity to gather ourselves and rebuild in such a way that we represent Newcastle in a better fashion.”
Stubbins pinpointed his lack of firepower in the front third as a key concern but suggested his team’s ability to executive a more attack-minded approach was a positive looking towards next season.
“We certainly created the opportunities to score, it just wasn’t meant to be for us to score the goals,” he said.
“We’ve gone away from trying to be just defensively resolute and get everyone behind the ball. We’ve actually tried to be more proactive and create some openings and I think we’ve learned a lot.
“The experience of the team is going to grow from all the young boys that are out on the pitch.”
The Jets play league leader Victory in Melbourne this Friday night.
