Newcastle Jets held 0-0 by Perth Glory

Newcastle Jets still have not scored in 2013/14 as they were held 0-0 by Perth Glory on Sunday at the Hunter Stadium. Nathan Burns had a penalty shout late in the second half but the referee waved play on after Jack Clisby’s tackle in the box sent Burns to the ground. Still, both sides picked their first point of the season, though they sit with Wellington Phoenix at the bottom of the A-League table after two rounds.

The match got off to a terrible start for Perth as Josh Risdon was forced to make way for Clisby in the 11th minute thanks to a knee injury. Yet the Glory were not terribly impaired as the Jets did little offensively in the first half. Craig Goodwin forced a nice save from Mark Birighitti and Kew Jaliens headed over the crossbar but the home side could not make a dent.

After the interval, Newcastle looked better with Adam Taggart hitting the crossbar just before the hour and Scott Neville blasted a shot that Danny Vukovic could only parry several minutes later. But the best save of the day belonged to Birighitti, whose diving effort denied a brilliant Sidnei shot from outside the box in the 81st minute. In the 89th minute, Clisby’s challenge put Burns on the floor but the referee did not give the Jets a last minute penalty and the game ended 0-0.

Perth will host Melbourne Heart at the nib Stadium on Sunday October 27, their first home game of the season. Newcastle will travel to New Zealand and play Wellington Phoenix at McLean Park in Napier on Sunday, seeking their first goal of the year.

Line-ups:

Newcastle Jets: Birighitti; Neville, Jaliens (Pepper 57’), Chapman, Gallaway; Caravella, Zadkovich, Bridges (Virgili 76’); Taggart, Burns, Goodwin (Brown 54’)

Unused subs: Kennedy, Brillante

Perth Glory: Vukovic; Jamieson, O’Neill, Pantelidis, Risdon (Clisby 11’); Burns, McGarry (C. Edwards 59’), R. Edwards; Zahra (Harold 58’), Sidnei, Maclaren

Unused subs: Duncan, De Silva