Newcastle Jets Youth made it two wins in a row as they defeated Adamstown Rosebud 3-2 on Saturday afternoon.
The Jets started brightly and had a good chance just two minutes in when Leroy Jennings beat his man and slid the ball across the face of the Rosebud’s goal. Adamstown keeper Paul Bitz could only watch as the ball went to the back post, which forced swift action from an Adamstown defender who cautiously put the ball out for a corner, just beating Cody Carroll to the ball.
The game soon settled and both teams had limited chances throughout the first 45. The Jets could argue that they had the better of the first half, with Adamstown keeper Bitz making some smart claims to deny the Jets from wide areas.
Adamstown had a chance within the first minute of the second half after a defensive slip up from centre back Mitchell Dobson. A Rosebud attacker gathered the ball 20 yards out but didn’t trouble Jets keeper Noah James, who claimed the ball with ease to keep the game locked at 0-0.
However, the Jets did break the deadlock in the 64th minute when Carroll found speedster Jennings with a pinpoint through ball. Jennings did the rest, beating his defender with ease then slipping the ball past the oncoming keeper Bitz to send Jets Youth a goal up.
It was 2-0 just two minutes later when Kaleb Cox slid the ball into a dangerous area inside the Rosebud’s box. Finn Parris got the final touch, sending it into the bottom corner to double Jets Youth’s advantage.
It was a fairy-tale four minutes for the Jets, as they went onto score again in the 68th minute. Cox was again the provider as he found Carroll free at the back post. Carroll dealt with the ball, hitting it on the volley and sending it past a helpless Bitz and into the top corner.
Adamstown scored from the penalty spot in the 77th minute after referee Aaron Strickland judged Regan Lundy to of handled the ball inside the box. Striker Alex Read made no mistake, firing home from 12-yards to make for an interesting last 13 minutes of play.
Adamstown scored another in the 79th minute thanks to a superb header from Mitch Hunter from a corner. Hunter leapt above the pack and sent his header onto the post and in, leaving a full stretched James with little chance in goal.
Some 40 seconds later Adamstown had a golden opportunity to level the scores when a Rosebud attacker seemed to miscue his cross, which went over the head of James and onto the crossbar, then out for a goal kick.
Jets Youth held on for a 3-2 triumph, collecting their second consecutive win after defeating competition front runners Lambton Jaffas last weekend.
Newcastle Jets Youth 3 (Jennings 63’, Parris 65’, Carroll 68’) def. Adamstown Rosebuds 2 (Read 77’ (p), Hunter 79’)
The Jets will now have a weekend off before returning on Saturday 10 June 2017 to face Lake Macquarie Roosters at Macquarie Field. Kick-off is at 2:30pm.