The third and final F3 Derby ended in a draw thanks to a solid performance by the Jets.
Gary van Egmond was upbeat following the Jets F3 Derby draw with the Central Coast Mariners last night and whilst they didn-t take all three points the team walks away with a solid performance away from home against the competition leaders.
“It feels a little like a loss because of the way the game panned out; we conceded off a set piece so in the respect it’s disappointing,” van Egmond said.
“You come to the team who is winning the competition by 8 points and you play as well as we did for the majority of the game and you only get a point so it was a little frustrating.
“I thought we dominated proceedings early on and kept the ball quite well and as a result of that we got the early goal.”
The level of team fitness and their ability to keep control of the ball were the two key positives the Jets will take out of the match with the league leaders. The Mariners were dangerous on the counter attack and the Jets had to make sure their defence was solid, and overall the team handled the attack well.
Van Egmond was pleased the “penalty karma gods” appeared to be with the team when former Jet Troy Hearfield missed converting a penalty opportunity in the first half and was impressed with the performance of goal keeper Ben Kennedy.
The team is very clear in wanting to let Members and Supporters know they are far from out of the finals race this year.
“There is a lot of passion within the team and as I said they are pretty disappointed with the fact that we only got a point,” the coach explained.
“That fourth to last place is extremely tight so right up to the end I would suggest that anyone looking to get in to the top 6 will have the opportunity.”
Home grown products Ben Kantarovski and Jacob Pepper both put in positive performances for the side with the coaching staff very happy with their game.
“It was Kanta’s best game since he’s started to play more regularly and young Jacob is also developing along as well,” he added.
The Jets escaped the match without any injuries, and will continue to monitor Captain Jobe Wheelhouse and Francis Jeffers.
