Who will replace Ben Kennedy in Friday night’s clash with Adelaide at Hindmarsh Stadium?
With goalkeeper Ben Kennedy ruled out of Friday-s game against Adelaide, the Newcastle Jets have two eager and capable replacements in Matthew Nash and Jack Duncan.
Kennedy was carried off the field after a colliding with teammate Tarek Elrich during the Jets 2-1 loss to Brisbane on Saturday and was today medically ruled out to play this weekend.
Despite missing the last two weeks with an abductor strain, 30-year-old reserve goalkeeper Nash could make his first A-League appearance on Friday.
“Nashy hasn-t played for a couple of weeks but he obviously has a lot of experience which is very pleasing from a coaching point of view,” coach Gary van Egmond explained.
Making his A-League debut against Brisbane on the weekend, youth goalkeeper Jack Duncan will compete with Nash for the top job.
18-year-old Duncan recently returned from Kuala Lumpur where he helped the Young Socceroos qualify for the AFC U-19 Championships and was given van Egmond-s seal of approval after his debut on Saturday.
“Jack didn-t do too much wrong the other night and he has been doing really well this season so we will look at that when we get closer to the game,” the coach added.
“He did well on Saturday and he like all young players making their debut suffered from some nerves but now he has that under his belt I think he will feel a lot better next time he is called upon.”
With van Egmond scheduled to announce his week 8 squad on Wednesday, other players being monitored this week include Byun, Elrich and Ali Abbas.
“Byun picked up a cork and missed training on Monday as a precaution,” he explained.
“Tarek has some issues with his hamstring and missed yesterday and today-s sessions and will train with the youth team tomorrow before re-joining the first team on Thursday.
“Ali picked up a strain from the youth game but it is a really mild strain and we will know more as the week goes by.”
Make sure you keep an eye on the Jets website on Wednesday to see who van Egmond selects in his squad for Friday-s game against Adelaide United.
