Gold Coast coach Miron Bleiberg insists the A-League is anything but a two-horse race despite his side losing more ground on frontrunners Melbourne and Sydney FC.

United suffered a 3-2 loss at the hands of resurgent Newcastle at EnergyAustralia Stadium on Sunday after the Victory and Sydney both scored wins on Saturday.

That left Bleiberg’s one-time competition favourites sitting in third spot, four points behind Sydney, seven from the table-topping Victory and just one ahead of the Jets, who posted their third consecutive win.

But the coach was surprisingly upbeat after the loss and confident Gold Coast were still genuine contenders for the title.

“I learn from this and now we have four home games in a row next,” Bleiberg said.

“I hate to lose when we deserve to win, that’s when I’m not smiling, but to lose to a good team…

“We’ll hang in there, we will be there at the end.

“Don’t forget Melbourne have to come to our place, Melbourne have to come to Sydney’s place, and a month ago according to you guys (the media) Sydney had apparently already won the title and corked the champagne and then lost three in a row.

“Wait and see … we are going to surprise you.”

Jets coach Branko Culina was also upbeat after the win, though also counting a significant loss after marquee midfielder Fabio Vignaroli was forced off with a serious, potentially season-ending injury.

The Victory retained their three-point lead atop the competition with a classy 3-0 away win over Central Coast on Saturday, giving them an impressive 22 points from nine road games this season.

Victory coach Ernie Merrick said next Saturday’s top-of-the-table showdown with Sydney FC would be a “six point game” in a match that could give his side a stranglehold on the minor premiership.

Sydney kept in touch with a 1-0 away victory over Wellington Phoenix, with a Steve Corica penalty helping them to become the first visiting side to win in New Zealand for more than a year.

Brisbane’s final hopes were dealt a savage blow at Suncorp Stadium with last-placed Adelaide scoring a 1-0 upset win.

The Roar and United remain anchored at the bottom of the table, locked on 20 competition points.

North Queensland kept their playoff hopes alive with a 1-0 upset win over Perth Glory at Dairy Farmers Stadium on Friday night.

© AAP 2012

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