What We Learned – Newcastle Jets 0 Perth Glory 2

What We Learned – Newcastle Jets 0 Perth Glory 2 [VIDEO]

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Perth Glory battled through the midweek allegations from Football Federation Australia to claim all three points in a 2-0 triumph over the last placed Newcastle Jets at Hunter Stadium on Easter Monday. The feat was achieved through an Andy Keogh header just after the half-time interval and another rocket from substitute Nebosja Marinkovic in the dying minutes.

The opener resulted from a Ben Kennedy save off the back of Sidney Sciola’s effort, the parry only made it to Jamie Maclaren who returned the rebound back into the danger area and onto the head of the Irishman. Keogh would also be involved in the sealer, his deft lay off setting the Serbian on a charge to the edge of the box where he let rip and bent the ball with the outside of his foot onto the far post and into the net.

The Jets need some lethal ammunition 

There is no secret Newcastle have struggled to find the route to goal this season, registering the fewest in the A-League with just 18 and their top scorer Edson Montano is the culprit at large. The Ecuadorian has scored three times for the Jets and wasted bundles of opportunities, there were numerous times Perth were cracked open due to some clever passing movement from Enver Alivodic and Mitch Cooper, and the ball spilled out to the feet of Montano who only needed to find the net. A task that was met with hesitation and a lack of ruthlessness.

Since the 7-0 thrashing dished out by Adelaide United several weeks ago, Phil Stubbins strived to make his side difficult to score against and recent results have reflected some success in that department. The 2-1 victory over a weakened Western Sydney Wanderers in March hinted at the attacking ranks also making the turn which was certainly displayed at Hunter Stadium versus Perth. Obviously A-League silverware is out of question for Newcastle so some of the focus will need to turn to next season and a goalscoring attacker needs to be at the top of Nathan Tinkler’s cheque book.

https://youtu.be/A_wa61uDZL8

Back to back glory brings progress

Perth’s fall from grace has been well documented since December, however, with back-to-back wins against the Wanderers last Saturday and Newcastle last night Kenny Lowe’s side now have the confidence to push into the finals and possibly earn themselves a Semi-final at nib Stadium after moving into second place behind the Melbourne Victory on goal difference as Sydney FC and Wellington Phoenix cracked under the pressure and dropped vital points.

Although the Glory’s attacking play was far from polished at Hunter Stadium their defensive stocks provided the dividends. The backline were collectively responsible in acting as Danny Vukovic’s deputies, most notably Michael Thwaite and Dino Djulbic who were throwing their bodies in front of a goal bound shot numerous times to maintain a clean sheet, even Rostyn Griffiths and Richard Garcia from the midfield got in on the act with a couple of important blocks.

Luck of the Irish returns? 

Andy Keogh finally broke his personal goal drought with a header that dribbled past a flat footed Ben Kennedy to open the scoring against Newcastle. The Irishman’s last goal came against the Melbourne Victory in December a stark contrast to the player who raced to to the helm of the A-League scoring charts in the first-half of the season.

With the Glory now recording a second victory following on three points against Western Sydney, Kenny Lowe will be hoping this resurgence can transcend onto the individuals, none more so than Keogh, who is key if Perth are to lift a maiden A-League trophy in April.

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The road ahead 

The home side will travel to the backyard of Melbourne Victory on Friday night and will aim to disrupt the food chain and climb above the Western Sydney Wanderers into ninth place, whereas the Glory have a huge fixture against the Sky Blues in Sydney at Allianz Stadium to prove they have returned to form. Although, Perth will need to be cleared of any wrong doing by the FFA. More news on that front is expected Wednesday.

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