The Newcastle Jets schedule for their tour of Spain has been altered, with the club set to take on opponents who also hail from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
The club, currently based at the Pinatar Arena was due to play Cartagena FC, Getafe FC and Real Murcia between Saturday 28 July and Friday 3 August.
Ernie Merrick’s side will still face Cartagena, but that fixture has been moved from Saturday 28 July to Friday 3 August.
Discussions are currently underway with two Middle Eastern clubs, also based in the San Pedro del Pinatar region to play a further two games – with details to be confirmed shortly.
Football Operations Manager, Joel Griffiths said the discussions with prospective teams were well advanced.
“We’ve had to make a couple of changes to the original schedule to accommodate player availability for our opposition,” Griffiths said.
“We’re just finalising dates and times before making an official announcement on our new fixtures.
“Managing a schedule on a tour such as this can be a delicate process, making one change can force several which unfortunately means our games against Real Murcia and Getafe CF won’t be going ahead.
“We’ll be playing against teams also training in the region for pre-season, a real benefit of being based at Pinatar Arena Football Centre.
“We’re surrounded by some really strong sides who are all looking for friendly fixtures and we’ve identified a couple of teams who we’d like to play – with a preference for those also based within the AFC.
“Playing against these sort of teams is going to expose the players to teams they may face if we qualify for the Asian Champions League.
“The travel and the conditions on this tour are already giving them an insight into what they may face, and this change will ultimately provide them with a more relevant opposition.”
Details on the club’s updated fixtures will be provided as soon as they are known, with all games still to be held at the Pinatar Arena Football Centre.
