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Melbourne Victory have claimed a fourth consecutive win as they dispatched of the Newcastle Jets in a 4-2 contest.
It was a very tight first half hour in Geelong with both sides looking strong on the ball but unable to register any efforts of merit.
With 30 minutes played, Ben Khalfallah then did well to work in a cross that was ruled to have struck the arm of Johnny Kourtroumbis. The one and only Besart Berisha stepping up to dispatch the penalty past Jack Duncan and become the A-League’s outright leading goalscorer.
Just five minutes later, Victory would strike again with James Troisi playing a great ball across goal to find a free Marcos Rojas who did well to hook the ball home.
It was first 45 minutes to forget for the Jets who failed to issue a shot on target and also lost left back Ivan Vujica to injury.
After the break, Newcastle were seeing more of the ball but it was the Victory who would strike first. A strong shot from Fahid Ben Khalfallah, who was found in the box by Rojas, crossing the goal-line despite the best efforts of Duncan in goals.
Seemingly out of the contest, the Jets would hit back straight away with substitute Ma Leilei finding the bottom right of goal from outside the box in the 61st minute.
Any hope of a comeback however was snuffed out in the 69th minute when James Troisi pounced on a loose ball in the box and rifled it past Duncan to put the Victory 4-1 ahead.
Down but not quite out, the Jets would grab a second goal in the 76th minute when a Wayne Brown shot took a heavy deflection from Carl Valeri to wrong foot Lawrence Thomas and creep home.
It was a rather tense final ten minutes as the Jets sought further consolation but weren’t able to add another in a game in which they showed plenty of spirit.
For the Victory it’s a fourth straight win as they keep the pressure on Sydney FC at the top of the table.
Final Score:
Melbourne Victory 4
Newcastle Jets 2
An in-form Melbourne Victory welcome a resolute Newcastle Jets to Simmonds Stadium tonight looking to secure a fourth consecutive win. Join us on The Roar from 7:50pm AEDT for all of the action.
Sitting second and with a game in hand over first placed Sydney FC, Victory are looking like genuine title contenders. They notched up a third straight win last round easily accounting for Central Coast Mariners last week in a 4-1 win.
With the equal highest A-League scorer in Besart Berisha, and a Marcos Rojas with eight goals and six assists from eight games, the Victory truly do look a force to be reckoned with.
As for the Jets, they’ve been surprisingly resilient this season and currently sit fifth as a result. Though denied a third consecutive win last week in a 2-2 draw with Wellington Phoenix, Newcastle showed real spirit to twice come from behind and salvage a point.
Their two Andrews in Hoole and Nabbout respectively both got their names on the scoresheet last week and look to be in career high form. Though still plagued by injuries, the Jets look to be far more resilient side under Mark Jones this season.
Victory have promoted both Mitch Austin and Rashid Mahazi into the squad for this game but remain without Alastair Bray who is their only injured player right now.
The Jets similarly have promoted two players with Aleksandr Kokko and Lachlan Jackson both included in an extended squad.
Prediction
After the way they dismantled the Mariners last week, I can’t go past a Victory win tonight. While I hope and can see the Jets making a game of it, on paper the Victory are superior and should win 3-1.
So can the Victory make it four wins in a row or can the Jets cause an upset to cement their spot in the six?
Join us on The Roar from 7:50pm AEDT to find out.
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