Craig Deans has made three changes to the squad set to tackle the Bulls at McDonald Jones Stadium tomorrow afternoon.
The loss of luckless Lachlan Jackson has been offset by the return of defenders Jason Hoffman and Johnny Koutroumbis.
Jackson, who missed most of last season with an ACL injury, limped from the pitch during training midweek and is set for a stint on the sidelines after injuring his ankle.
Deans said the inclusion of two experience defenders would give his side more stability.
“Hoffy comes back in from injury. We probably could’ve played him last week if we had’ve rolled the dice but at this point of the season we didn’t think it was worth it,” Deans said.
“Similar story with Johnny. He’s missed the first two games and the last couple weeks of pre-season so it’s just been a steady return for him.
“Obviously we’d love to have everyone fit all the time, but you just have to be careful and sensible about how far you push people.
“They both trained really well this week, so it’s been nice to have them back and have a couple of extra numbers at training too.”
Deans said both Koutroumbis and Hoffman will add an extra layer of depth to the team, and their experience will allow the team to be more ruthless when they have to be at crucial stages of the game.
Sunday 17 January 2021
Newcastle Jets v Macarthur Bulls
McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle
Kick-Off: 4:05pm
Referee: Ben Abraham
Assistant Referee 1: Ryan Gallagher
Assistant Referee 2: James Cleal
Fourth Official: Daniel Elder
VAR: Alex King
TV Broadcast: Live coverage on FOX SPORTS 505 from 4:00pm (AEDT), Sky Sport 7 (New Zealand), Kayo Sports (www.kayosports.com.au) and MyFootball Live App, Live Fast and Data Free for Telstra mobile customers
Join the conversation on Twitter using the hash-tag #NEWvMAC
To purchase tickets visit www.a-league.com.au/tickets
Newcastle Jets squad: 1.Lewis ITALIANO (gk), 2. Johnny KOURTROUMBIS, 3.Jason HOFFMAN, 4.Nigel BOOGAARD (c), 6.Steven UGARKOVIC, 9.Roy O’DONOVAN, 11.Ramy NAJJARINE , 13.Maki PETRATOS, 14.Ali ABBAS, 15.Tete YENGI, 18.Jack ARMSON, 17.Valentino YUEL, 19.Kosta PETRATOS, 23.Jack DUNCAN (gk), 24.Connor O’TOOLE, 25.Jack SIMMONS, 27.Lucas MAURAGIS, 28.Blake ARCHBOLD , 32.Angus THURGATE, 44.Nikolai TOPOR-STANLEY
**2-4 to be omitted**
Ins: 2. Johnny KOUTROUMBIS (return from injury), 3.Jason HOFFMAN (return from injury), 25.Jack SIMMONS (promoted)
Outs: 22. Lachlan JACKSON (ankle – 4 weeks)
Unavailable: 5. Ben KANTAROVKSI (calf – 4 weeks)
Macarthur FC squad: 1.Adam FEDERICI (gk), 3.Antony GOLEC, 4.Benat ETXEBARRIA, 5 Mark MILLIGAN (c), 6.Aleksandar JOVANOVIC, 7.Ivan FRANJIC, 8.Denis GENREAU, 10.Loic PUYO, 11.Tommy OAR, 12.James MEREDITH, 15.Aleksandar SUSNJAR, 16.Nick SUMAN (gk), 19.Michael RUHS, 21.Jake HOLLMAN, 22.Liam ROSE, 24.Charles M’MOMBWA, 27.Matt DERBYSHIRE, 29.Antonis MARTIS, 31.Lachlan ROSE, 33.Markel SUSAETA
**2-4 to be omitted**
Ins: 22.Liam ROSE (promoted), 24.Charles M’MOMBWA (promoted)
Outs: Nil
Unavailable: Nil
