Jets striker Michael Bridges is determined to take a positive attitude into the coming pre-season fixtures.
Newcastle Jets- striker Michael Bridges has this week put aside the hype surrounding Sunday-s pre-season fixture against a Sydney United outfit that will feature former Qantas Socceroos Zeljko Kalac, Craig Moore and Tony Popovic.
The former English Premier League star believes the match will be a superb spectacle for the supporters who visit Edensor Park, but is more concerned with maintaining the Jets- pre-season winning streak. The Hunter-based club has claimed two successive victories over Melbourne Heart and NBN Select XI in the past week and Bridges is aiming to continue that run of form against United.
“I think it-s good for the fans to see all these guys again and Kalac is coming back home. But it-s another game, these guys are experienced players, they might have lost their legs but they can still all play football.”
“So it-s not going to be easy but we-ve got to go about it with the same mindset and not treat it as a charity game, we-ve got to go and get another result,” said Bridges.
The 31-year-old frontman, who scored six goals after joining the Jets midway through last season, believes that continuing the Jets- positive preparation ahead of Hyundai A-League kick-off in early August will require adopting that same ambitious attitude at all times.
“That was one of the first things we said in the dressing room before the last game, we need to get a winning mentality going from the start,” he explained. “It doesn-t matter what the opposition is, whether it-s Melbourne Heart or the Northern select team from the area, you-ve got to go and win games.”
“We got off to a good start against the Heart but it wasn-t an easy task, and it was never going to be because they-ve got some good players, but the boys have done a fantastic job to win two from two and hopefully we can take that in against Sydney.”
Indeed, Bridges is looking forward to what is potentially shaping up as another strong season for the Hyundai A-League 2007/08 champions, with new recruits such as Kasey Wehrman, Jeremy Brockie and Marcello Fiorentini already making a positive impact.
“The squad and the team in general is a lot stronger than last year and we-ve got a lot more depth. Last season when we got a few injuries we struggled, but the competition (for positions) is fantastic and we-ve got other players who can come in and do a job for the ones that are starting,” stated Bridges.
Sunday-s match against Sydney United kicks off at 4pm at Edensor Park. Tickets are available from the Sydney United club.
