Newcastle Jets coach Gary van Egmond believes his team were robbed of a clear-cut goal in their 1-0 loss to Perth Glory at Hunter Stadium on Saturday evening.
Newcastle Jets coach Gary van Egmond believes his team were robbed of a clear-cut goal in their 1-0 loss to Perth Glory at Hunter Stadium on Saturday evening.
Jets defender Kew Jaliens bundled a half-volley towards goal in the 71st minute which Danny Vukovic blocked on the line with replays showing inconclusive evidence at best.
“It’s a goal. There’s not much we can do about it other than the fact that the linesman didn’t give it,” van Egmond said.
“They have a tough job but at the end of the day you get put there to do that job and you have to make those decisions.
“I don’t think it was a case where it was just a little bit over the line – I thought the one we had against the Mariners was a tougher call than this one – unfortunately they’ve gone the other way.”
Although disappointed with the decision, van Egmond believes the referees need to be given support in order to improve along with the progression and expansion of the A-League.
“We know it’s not an easy job – the one thing that we’ve got to try and do is support them. We’ve got to support them as much as we can,” he said.
“The game has gone on in leaps and bounds from a coaching perspective, from professionalism as far as players, to the way in which the clubs are run and the amount of money that’s being involved now.
“So I think the onus is on the FFA to ensure that they keep on working and helping the officials to keep on getting them better.”
Van Egmond admitted he was frustrated by the Jets lacklustre performance at home and highlighted their lack of impact in the front third as particularly disappointing.
“We need to get better at controlling games with the ball and that’s the task because it’s not about just about being able to play counter-attack football, it’s about also at stages being able to control the game with the ball,” he said.
“You should be really controlling the game, taking your opportunities and ensuring you get the three points. Today that didn’t happen.”
The Jets have now lost four of their past six matches, slipping to sixth on the A-League ladder.
“We’re back in the mix again, we’ve made it difficult for ourselves, we didn’t reap the rewards of getting good results against Brisbane away and Victory away,” van Egmond said.
“We’ve got ourselves back into the group to try and stay in the top six.
“That’s something that we could have avoided but unfortunately it hasn’t so roll up the sleeves and we’re on again.”
