Michael Bridges is hoping his return from injury can take some of the pressure off the Jets’ forward line against Perth Glory.
Hunter Ports Newcastle Jets forward Michael Bridges is hoping his return from injury can help take some of the pressure off the Jets- forward line ahead of their clash with Perth Glory at Hunter Stadium on Sunday.
Bridges missed the Jets- Round 1 loss to Sydney FC due to a niggling groin injury, but said he is determined to use his experience and playing nous to make an immediate impact upon his return.
“(Missing Round 1) was a very hard pill to swallow,” Bridges said
“We had a five month pre-season and I felt like I was flying, so to get one little niggle the week before the first game was difficult to take.
“I-ve trained all week with the boys and I-m feeling good now.
“We-re all just focusing now on Perth and how we can break them down in the final third and get some goals.
“It-s almost like having another gaffer on the park, so hopefully with myself being back this week I can take the pressure off the younger boys and they can go and express themselves.”
Bridges said the Jets have their sights firmly set on notching their first win of the season in front of their home fans on Sunday.
“We-re footballers and we take pride in what we do. We want to win every game, but we know that probably won-t happen as you saw last week,” Bridges explained.
“The great thing with football is you always have the week after to put it right and come out and have another crack.
“We-ve brushed off all the cobwebs and we-re ready.”
Bridges said the Jets had pinpointed a couple of areas where they possibly might be able to hurt Perth, are coming off a 3-1 opening round loss to Adelaide United.
“We-ve looked at their video and saw there were a few little things that worked really well for Adelaide and we-re going to try and replicate that,” Bridges said.
“We may have to change our game plan a bit, but if it means breaking them down, we-ll do so.
“We-ve been working on our shape and things early on, so I-m sure it will make for a great first home game at Hunter Stadium.”
Newcastle Jets v Perth Glory
Sunday, October 20
Hunter Stadium
Kick-off 3pm
Tickets available from PROticket
