A trio of second half goals from Nigel Boogard, Steven Ugarkovic and Devante Clut helped secure a confident 4-0 win against Brisbane Roar and subsequently Mark Jones’ inaugural victory as Head Coach of the Newcastle Jets on Sunday.
After a nervy beginning to the match with both sides creating but squandering good chances it was Jets winger Andrew Nabbout who pounced on a Luke DeVere error before crossing dangerously into the penalty area, which ultimately forced Jack Hingert to wrong-foot Michael Theo and put the ball into his own net in the 8th minute.
With both teams continuing to attack chances were plentiful. First Nabbout almost doubled the Jets’ lead, only to see his shot glance wide of Theo’s far post, then Jamie Maclaren uncharacteristically scuffed his shot when put through by Brett Holman.
The Roar then went close to an equaliser when Tommy Oar picked up the ball in space and drilled a vicious left foot strike which seemed destined for the top corner, only for Jets stopper Jack Duncan to outdo the shot by producing an immense save.
Danish striker Morten Nordstrand made way for Devante Clut to lead the Jets’ attack in the second stanza.
Chances were few and far between at the start of the second period, with Roar’s Brandon Borrello looking most likely shortly after the restart but his shot couldn’t find the way past a sea of scrambling Jets defenders.
The Jets got their first corner of the match in the 62nd minute and they took full advantage. Ben Kantarovski recovered well to keep alive an over-hit Andrew Hoole set piece, looping the ball back into the box, which Boogaard headed home. It was the Captain’s first goal for his hometown Club the Hyundai A-League.
Despite having an inexperienced defence alongside him Boogard, Lachlan Jackson, Nicholas Cowburn and Ivan Vujica excelled and kept their opponents at bay for much of the second half. John Aloisi’s men’s best chances came from Brett Holman – first the former Socceroos sent an effort high over the bar from a good area, then he curled a shot wide.
Ugarkovic got his name on the score sheet in the 71st minute when he took a brilliant touch outside the box before unleashing a piercing left foot drive beyond Theo.
And the scoring was rounded out by the team’s birthday boy, Clut, with just four minutes left on the clock. Man of the Match Nabbout took a great touch following a long pass from the back before dribbling into the area and squaring his pass for Clut who made no mistake.
Jones was pleased with the performance and clean sheet, and even had the chance to give important match minutes to Mateo Poljak and Labinot Haliti in the second half ahead of next week’s trip south to Sydney for a clash with the Western Sydney Wanderers at Spotless Stadium on Sunday evening.
Newcastle Jets 4 (Hingert (OG) 8’, Boogard 62’, Ugarkovic 71’, Clut 86’)
Brisbane Roar 0
McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle
Referee: Peter Green               Â
Attendance: 8,335
Newcastle Jets: 4. Nigel Boogard, 5. Ben Kantarovski (8. Mateo Poljak 68’), 6. Steven Ugarkovic, 7. Andrew Hoole, 10. Wayne Brown, 13. Ivan Vujica, 15. Andrew Nabbout (11. Labinot Haliti 89’), 16. Nick Cowburn, 19. Morten Nordstrand (23. Devante Clut 46’), 20. Jack Duncan (Gk), 22. Lachlan Jackson
Substitutes not used: 8. Mitch Cooper, 30. Pierce Clark (Gk)
Yellow cards: Nil
Red cards: Nil
Brisbane Roar: 1. Michael Theo (Gk), 3. Luke DeVere (4. Daniel Bowles 76’), 5. Corey Brown, 7. Thomas Kristensen, 8. Jacob Pepper (16. Nathan Konstandopoulos 73’), 9. Jamie Maclaren, 10. Brett Holman, 11. Tommy Oar, 13. Jade North, 19. Jack Hingert, 28. Brandon Borrello (22. Thomas Broich 60’)
Substitutes not used: 21. Jamie Young (Gk), 26. Nicholas D’Agostino
Yellow cards: Nil
Red cards: Nil
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