Newcastle Jets midfielder Ruben Zadkovich says the Jets are excited ahead of their clash with Perth Glory on Friday night.
Hunter Ports Newcastle Jets midfielder Ruben Zadkovich says the Jets are excited ahead of their clash with Perth Glory at nib Stadium on Friday night.
The Jets are currently one of a number of teams stuck in a log-jam in the middle of the A-League table and Zadkovich said they-re eager to move their way up the ladder with a win on the road in Perth.
“It-s great to be here, the boys are pretty pumped for a solid game and we know that Perth are going to be a tough opposition over here,” Zadkovich said.
“The last few weeks we-ve kind of struggled a little bit, but it hasn-t been through a lack of effort.
“Perth have been a little bit the same, so it-s going to be a pretty scrappy match and we-re going to battle hard and try and get the points.”
Newcastle were defeated 3-2 by Perth courtesy of a late Chris Harold strike last time the two sides met.
Zadkovich said the Jets were determined to turn the tables on that result this time around.
“It was a hard one to swallow, especially when you have a long flight home to think about it,” he said.
“It was a good game, both teams really went for it and hopefully, if it-s a game similar to that with a different result, we-ll be happy.”
The Jets conceded two goals from set pieces in their last clash with the Glory. Zadkovich said it is important that the Jets are switched on and perform consistently over the course of the 90 minutes on this occasion.
“Obviously our defence hasn-t been great this season, the stats don-t lie, Zadkovich said.
“We know that-s something we-ve definitely got to focus on and work on if we-re going to progress this season.
“In patches, we-ve played really well and we know when we put it together, we-re a quality side
“We-ve got some quality young players and some good experienced players like Emile Heskey.
“If we put it all together for 90 minutes, we know we can beat anyone.”
With regular Jets skipper Jobe Wheelhouse absent through injury, Zadkovich has been given the privilege of wearing the captain-s armband and he said he is relishing the responsibility.
“I-m just filling in for Jobe while he-s injured, but it-s a role I enjoy,” he said.
“Like I-ve said a few times we-ve got a lot of young players and to guide and steer those players around the field is a pleasure.
“They-re all great guys with great attitudes and it-s really enjoyable.”
Zadkovich said the Jets playing squad had been unaffected by reports in the media today regarding the Club-s future.
“To be honest, it-s just business as usual. Nothing that we do is going to change any of that,” he said.
“It-s totally up to Hunter Sports Group and we-re confident that they-ll be right and work it out and we-ll just go out there and play the best we can.
“It-s big business and it-s obviously complicated, so it-s not something the players can have any input to.
“We just know that we-ve got to go out there on Friday and do the best we can.
“We-re here, we-re training hard and we-re pumped for a big game, so it doesn-t actually take as much of a toll as you would think.”
