Despite dominating the contest the Western Sydney Wanderers managed just the one goal, yet it was enough to draw level with Brisbane at the top of the A-League.
The Wanderers were on the front-foot from the start and gave the home side a scare when Romeo Castelen had a penalty shout denied after contesting possession with Jets goalkeeper Mark Birighitti.
Newcastle did not heed the warning though and the visitors scored the game’s only goal in the 17th minute. Mark Bridge got in behind the defence on the right-hand side before cutting the ball back through a cluster of players in the six-yard box, falling kindly to an unmarked Jaushua Sotirio who finished with aplomb.
Sotirio continued to terrorise the Jets defence when, just four minutes later, he cut in from the left onto his right-foot before unleashing a goalbound strike which Birighitti touched around the far post.
With just half an hour gone, Castelen should have doubled the lead when found in space on the left. Despite the time and space given to the winger by the home defence, the Dutchman could only hit the side netting.
After the restart, Milos Trifunovic hit the side netting before Birighitti denied the Wanderers again – this time, Andreu saw his curling shot tipped over after the Jets fell asleep from a corner.
Newcastle almost hit the self destruct button in the 54th minute when Steven Ugarkovic dallied on the ball in the back third before being robbed by Dimas, with the goalkeeper out of position. The Spanish midfielder tried to catch Birighitti out, but his weak effort was able to be saved by the furious custodian.
Somehow the Wanderers could land the killer blow and Bridge came closest just before the hour, when Scott Jamieson found the striker with his back to goal. The former Jet managed to turn and shoot, but his powerful effort flew over by an agonisingly small margin.
Scott Miller’s men managed to provide a scare when Leonardo forced Liam Reddy into a smart save from a long distance strike, before the Brazilian provided a free-kick for Nigel Boogaard at the back post, who smashed a header against the upright in the 81st minute.
Dario Vidosic was the next to go closest, when his thumping header flashed just wide in the 85th.
There was late drama when Birighitti went up for a corner in the third minute of stoppage time, which proved to be the last play of the game. The ball fell for the shot-stopper who made a clean effort towards goal, but his powerful strike was blocked.
The result keeps the Wanderers’ sights on the Premier’s Plate, while all but extinguishing Newcastle’s finals hopes for the fifth season running.
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Wanderers high press suffocates Jets
On a very warm day in the Hunter, Tony Popovic went against the grain and set his team up to press high up the park. This proved to be a masterstroke, as it did not allow Newcastle to ever settle into any rhythm or see much possession. He was allowed to deploy this tactic as his side is very fit and very mobile. The Jets saw little of the ball and spent most of the afternoon chasing shadows in the heat, visibly affecting some of their players, while not allowing key ballplayers like Ugarkovic to take control of the midfield.
On the rare occasion the Jets had the ball, they could very rarely play out, or were forced to cough up possession which put them on the back foot for the entire afternoon.
The inability to kill the game
One aspect that Popovic will not be pleased with was his side’s poor finishing which kept the Jets in the contest, despite being the better side by far.
As long as it stayed 1-0, one always felt the Jets might be able to draw level from something such as a set piece. Fortunately for the red-and-black, Boogaard’s header crashed off the upright and Birghitti’s last-gasp effort was scrambled away to safety.
The coach will be looking for his side to be more ruthless in their pursuit of the Premiership, although he might not be pleased. On another day we may have seen the scoreline blow out, but the volume of chances created will be encouraging in the run home.
Jets Leave Themselves a Mountain to Climb Yet Again
By conceding the first goal of the game for the 13th time this season from 23 games, Newcastle left themselves a mountain to climb yet again.
The first goal in a football game goes a long way to getting a positive result, and such a poor statistic is a big reason why the Jets find themselves at the wrong end of the ladder for the fifth year running.
Outside90’s A-League player of the year:
3 – Dimas Delgado
2 – Mark Bridge
1 – Jaushua Sotirio
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