Newcastle Jets are pleased to announce the appointment of Novocastrian Mark Jones to the position of Head of Performance.
Jones, who has spent two periods with the club as an Assistant Coach and who has also gathered substantial experience during numerous tenures in Asia, will re-join the Jets from Monday 6 July in line with the commencement of recently appointed Head Coach Scott Miller.
In his new role with Newcastle’s Hyundai A-League club, Jones will be responsible for the planning and delivery of first team strength and conditioning, including injury prevention, nutrition, and recovery.
While Jones will be aligned to the medical department inclusive of Head Physiotherapist, Justin Dougherty, he will also work closely with Jets Senior Assistant Coach, Jean-Paul de Marigny, in the team’s pre and post match analytical phases. This will include video analysis, match coding, and opposition scouting.
Miller said Jones would play an important role within the club’s football department.
“The position of Head of Performance in a crucial one in the A-League,” Miller explained. “Why Mark Jones was of interest to me was because of his skill set and what he can bring to the club.”
“I met Mark in Sydney a few weeks ago and we had a good meeting where he demonstrated not only his knowledge of his profession, but of Newcastle Jets and Australian football to me. From that point on he became a leading candidate to join our team.”
“Mark obviously has a vast background in strength and conditioning, but as importantly he understands the technical and tactical aspects of the game. This will enable him to function in-between the two schools of the football department,” Miller concluded.
Jones returns to the club with significant qualifications to his credit. Indeed, he is one of 12 FIFA Fitness Instructors worldwide, is an Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Elite Conditioning Instructor, and is Sportscode Accredited. He is also currently completing his FFA Pro Diploma.
Jones said that he’s delighted to be back involved with his hometown club.
“I’m a Newcastle person, and for me I just want to help secure a better result for the team and a better outcome for the club.”
“I have a responsibility to do the strength and conditioning, the video analysis, and assist with the technical side of the delivery of the football program, but I will help in any way I can to ensure that we get a better result,” Jones said.
