“The win helps us to build on that confidence,” coach Gary van Egmond said after Saturday’s Round 5 win in Adelaide.
Hunter Ports Newcastle Jets coach Gary van Egmond believes the team-s 2-1 away win over Adelaide will be provide great experience for his youthful outfit.
The Jets held a 2-0 lead heading into the final 20 minutes but a Fabio Ferreira goal for the Reds set up a heart-stopping finish for the visitors.
Van Egmond felt the Jets should have killed off the game earlier but was pleased with the determination the team showed to see out the match.
“It took us a little bit of time to get organised from a shape point of view but we kept ourselves pretty solid and maybe we could have got another one or two on the counter,” he said.
“That-s again a bit of an experience thing and knowing how to close out a game and the only way to get better at that is to experience those type of games and learning from it.
Despite the nervous finish, van Egmond was thrilled that the Jets were able to translate a good performance into a victory, especially away from home.
Goals either side of half time from Kew Jaliens and Adam Taggart put the Jets in a strong position, but the coach lamented his team-s wasteful finishing in the first half.
“First half we probably could have been a few more up, we had a couple of very good chances and unfortunately couldn-t get the ball in the back of the net,” he said.
“At half time the most important thing was to keep playing, when we scored we went into our shell a little bit and encouraged them on again.”
The Jets applied immense pressure to the Reds outfit restricting their ability to play out from the back and caused a number of turnovers in the process.
Van Egmond was pleased with the intensity of his side-s pressing and felt their tactical awareness allowed them to force crucial mistakes from Adelaide.
“There-s times to control the game with the ball and times to control the game without the ball and I thought we did that well today,” he said.
“The win helps us to build on that confidence and we have to keep working hard on the training field, keep improving on areas where we know we have to improve.”
The Jets have been strong defensively in the opening five rounds and van Egmond was quick to laud the impact of a much improved structure to the team-s performance.
“Minimising the opportunities that the teams have, I think that-s probably a big difference for us this year, I think we-ve conceded five goals in five games,” he said.
“You always keep yourself in the match that way and its testament to the group in regards to the way they-ve been defending.”
The Jets now return home this week to host the Brisbane Roar at Hunter Stadium on Sunday.
