Eli Adams’ two-goal assault might have shocked the Macarthur Bulls but his winning brace didn’t surprise coach Rob Stanton.
The Newcastle Jets mentor was all smiles after his A-League Men’s (ALM) side rebounded from a 1-0 deficit at the break to knock over their highly-fancied rivals 2-1 at Campbelltown Sports Stadium on Friday 25 October.
But, it was his young forward, who received all the plaudits.
Adams’ four-minute double represented Newcastle’s only two shots on target throughout the entirety of a match in which Macarthur had all the running in front of 3,809 fans.
However, the Bulls were left to rue their wastefulness as they failed to build on last week’s 6-1 win over Perth.
French import Valere Germain had a chance to tie things up with a 90th minute penalty but Jets’ No. 1 Ryan Scott produced a brilliant save to deny him.
Macarthur’s frustrations spilled over after full-time with assistant coach Christophe Gamel shown a red card by referee Tim Danaskos following a post-game melee sparked by Newcastle’s Dane Ingham.
Stanton said his side was keen to show it wouldn’t be intimidated by anyone in the ALM.
“There were some choice words and that happens with players when emotions are high,” he stated.
“It’s not a good look.
“But, players are upset and they might say a few words and it becomes a problem; hopefully it’s not an issue.
“To be honest, I think we deserved the win to be fair.
“I thought we actually did really well in the first half, I thought we controlled large parts of that game, I thought we had good penetration.
“There are a few areas we needed to adjust.
“I spoke to the players at half-time about it.
“The Bulls’ goal, for me, came against the run of play.
“We made an error in our positioning in the back third and we got caught with that.
“However, we adjusted it at the break.
“I also told them it was their time to step up and account for themselves.
“And, I thought they did that in the second half.
“The issues probably came when we got in front and they started to chance their hand, got a little bit braver.
“But, we worked hard to defend our goal and, with all due respect, we did a really good job.
“I didn’t think that was a penalty.
“If the referee has a good game, I’ll say they had a good game.
“In my opinion, I didn’t think he was great [today].
“That’s football, you have to accept it and no one’s going to be perfect because I know I’m not.”
Macarthur only had themselves to blame for the defeat after beginning with promise and taking a 19th minute lead.
Winger Jed Drew made an incisive run down the right flank and was able to thread a pass to Marin Jakolis, who finished at the back post.
Drew also saw a shot cleared off the line by Thomas Aquilina early in the second half and the Bulls’ inefficiency in front of goal proved costly.
The Jets barely had a sniff up until this point.
However, they found an opening down the right when Macarthur turned the ball over cheaply inside their own half.
Adams was quick to latch onto the loose pass and zoomed into the Bulls’ box leaving Matt Jurman in his wake before cooly slotting past Filip Kurto for a 56th minute equaliser.
Clearly emboldened by their goal, Newcastle went looking for more and they only had to wait four minutes to take the lead.
A direct ball was played long to Ben Gibson and the forward was able to hold up the play and find an on-rushing Adams, who added his second from the edge of the box.
we worked hard to defend our goal and, with all due respect, we did a really good job.
Rob Stanton
“Players improve when they play and, at the end of the day, if you look at Eli, there’s talent there,” Stanton said.
“I saw that when he was at the [Melbourne] Victory.
“But, he had a lot of competition, some really good players ahead of him.
“Those guys generally have a little bit extra in other areas of the game.
“So, I’ve spoken to Eli about that, not his talent… about other areas that if he can bring out in his game, it’ll shine.
“I thought he did a terrific job defending from the front.
“He stepped up, he was aggressive and he got into challenges.
“That’s not really part of his game.
“However, I told him it will lay the foundations for the good stuff he’s capable of doing.
“You’ve got to do the hard work… and I think he did that today.
“I can’t recall the last time he’s completed 90 minutes.
“But, it’s very hard to play good if you’re not consistently playing.
“So, I’ve just believed in him.
“That’s why I’m not surprised he scored two goals.
“I see those actions in training and it’s just going to give him a boost.”
Stanton compared Adams to last season’s sensation Clayton Taylor.
“It’s all about giving Eli a chance,” he said.
“Clayton’s a good example.
“He was an academy player out of Sydney who got signed by Newcastle.
“I knew he was going to play when I arrived, I knew he’d be in the starting 11.
“Everyone else probably didn’t.
“He ended up scoring seven goals and played a lot of matches, played a lot of minutes.
“So, he’s grown from that.
“He hasn’t had the best pre-season, he’s a little rusty.
“Lachie Bayliss is another one.
“He missed a lot of time last year due to injury.
“However, he showed the signs when I first played him that he could play a lot of minutes.
“He was good tonight.
“Kosta Grozos is another.
“There are heaps of them that once they play plenty of minutes, they’ll start being the players I know they can be.
“Eli’s no different.”
Germain had a chance to square the game up at the death but Scott saved and the Jets hung on for a valuable three points on the road.
- With AAP
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