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Jets striker Joel Griffiths has long been seen as Newcastle’s messiah, but to the Queensland Roar he’s just a very “naughty boy”.
Roar coach Frank Farina has his team on guard against the Jets marquee man from stealing hard-earned A-League points when they meet at EnergyAustralia Stadium on Sunday.
Griffiths has scored in the last five games against the Queenslanders, including winners in last season’s preliminary final and this year’s 1-0 heart-breaker at Suncorp Stadium.
“He’s a bit of a naughty boy Joel on occasions, particularly against us,” Farina said today.
“The game up here we lost 1-0, we probably deserved to win it but didn’t.
“More often or not (Newcastle) are the team that’s scored against us three or four times at the death.
“(Griffiths) is a good player. We just have to hope we’re on our game and can stop his.”
Asked if he’d devised any special plans to blunt the Jets talisman, Farina joked: “Not really apart from a shovel in the dressing room”.
The Jets faithful will be hoping for a swift return to form for Griffiths after he was unsurprisingly rusty in last week’s 1-0 loss in the F3 derby with Central Coast.
The striker was sidelined for three weeks with a hamstring injury and he was sorely missed, especially with under-fire Ecuadorian Edmundo Zuro struggling up front.
Newcastle coach Gary van Egmond is confident Griffiths will show his true colours after having a game under his belt.
“Was Joel 100 percent fit? Yes he was. But was he short of a gallop? Yes he was,” said van Egmond.
“And the same can be said for Mark Milligan. Both of those guys will be better for last week’s game.”
The last-start defeat at Gosford has seen the Jets slip to sixth in the league, three points out of the top four and two behind fifth-placed Queensland.
The Roar continued their imposing away record (three wins, two draws) with a 1-0 victory over the Phoenix in Wellington despite the unavailability of eight men.
“It was an important game and we got the win. In adversity sometimes good things can come out of it, but Newcastle have got similar problems,” Farina said.
The Roar, with striker Reinaldo (pelvis) the latest to be sidelined, have five players on Young Socceroos duty while the Jets have four young guns away with the national team.
Farina has been sweating over the fitness of influential midfield duo Danny Tiatto (buttock strain) and Massimo Murdocca (ankle) but today declared they would play on Sunday.
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