Newcastle Jets kicked off their 2009-10 Hyundai A-League campaign on a winning note on August 9, scoring a well-deserved 3-2 win over a ramshackle Wellington Phoenix combination at EnergyAustralia Stadium. Urged on by 6655 fans, the home team took the game to the visitors from the outset, and after silky-skilled Italian Fabio Vignaroli had gone desperately close with a twenty yard free-kick in the fifth minute, opened the scoring seven minutes later when Wellington's defence, not for the last time in the match, went AWOL! Vignaroli started the move in the centre circle, inviting Tarek Elrich to take the ball on into Wellington's half. As he was closed down by Tim Brown, the Newcastle fullback clipped the ball over the top of the visitors' misshapen rearguard, and through stormed Jason Hoffman. It was a difficult chance, given he had Mark Paston racing out of goal to confront him, as well as a bouncing ball to control, but the youngster took it superbly, his deft first-time lob leaving the 'keeper stranded as it arced over him and into the vacant net - a quality finish. Wellington sought a swift riposte, but Andrew Durante - one of the missing men moments earlier - headed tamely at Ben Kennedy on receipt of Leo Bertos' fourteenth minute free-kick. The supplier of that opportunity, who was far and away Wellington's best player in this match, then conjured an opening of his own, cutting in from the left before letting fly. Kennedy did well to block the effort at his near post. In the 22nd minute, the visitors fell further behind, and again they had no-one to blame but themselves. Elrich stormed down the right at pace before playing the ball inside to Jin Hyung Song, who had time to make a cup of tea, so much space was he afforded. That he was a good three yards inside Wellington's penalty area when he received the ball made the visitors' negligence even more heinous! He worked the ball onto his left foot before unleashing a twelve-yarder which Paston should have held onto, but only parried straight to the feet of the hovering Hoffman - 2-0. Newcastle were doing it easy, aided and abetted by a Wellington side whose rearguard boasted more holes than a colander! They were big holes, too - the "You could drive a truck through there!" variety! Not that the home team's back-line was much better in the 26th minute, as they afforded Ben Sigmund the freedom of their penalty area. The Wellington defender's head was picked out by Bertos' free-kick, and his unchallenged header powered past Kennedy - 2-1. Buoyed by his goal, and a sense of responsibility with two soft strikes having been conceded on his watch, Sigmund surged out of defence in the 28th minute and switched play splendidly to Troy Hearfield, who cut in from the right before letting fly with a shot which wasn't far away. Newcastle's response, initially, was tepid, the hat-trick-hunting Hoffman shooting tamely at Paston. But the home team unhinged Wellington's porous rearguard once again in the 32nd minute, spurning a glorious chance to restore their two-goal advantage in the process. Ljubo Milicevic stormed out of defence before Chris Triantis took over proceedings, and promptly sent Sasho Petrovski spearing through one of the gaping holes which were fast becoming a source of embarrassment to Wellington's coach, former All White defender Ricki Herbert. The enigmatic number nine lobbed the ball across the penalty area intending to reward Song's hard running by inviting him to add his name to the score sheet, but that plan foundered on the fast-retreating Tony Lochhead, who headed the ball out for a corner. Song's delivery was cleared to Angelo Costanzo, who laid the ball back into Adam D'Apuzzo's stride. The fullback swept in a cross which found Newcastle's captain, Matt Thompson, lurking unmarked in the penalty area. From eight yards out, he should have done better than volley over the bar with just Paston to beat. How Newcastle paid for that miss two minutes before half-time. And Thompson was at fault again! Having swept past three opponents, he gifted possession to a fourth - not a clever thing to do when Bertos is the player in question!

Downfield he bounded, ball at toe, and with new team-mates Paul Ifill and Chris Greenacre to his left and right respectively. The latter option was chosen, and the former Tranmere Rovers striker duly smashed a low drive goalwards from the edge of the penalty area. Kennedy dived to his left, but the ball squirmed under him and into the net, leaving the prone goalkeeper to look for the nearest wormhole into which he could crawl as Greenacre celebrated a goal on debut for his new club, who scarcely deserved to be on level terms come referee Chris Beath's half-time whistle. Compared to the first half, the second spell was a largely sterile affair, lit up every once in a while by the craft of Vignaroli. The vision and quality of passing he displayed were a joy to behold, and certainly provided some welcome contrast to the opposition's one-dimensional approach play, a long ball theme which was afforded the odd welcome respite by the energy and improvisation of Bertos. He came close to levelling the scores seven minutes into the second half, dashing through from half-way before unleashing a twenty-five yarder which fizzed a yard wide of Kennedy's left-hand upright. His free-kick from similar range twenty minutes from time landed on the roof of the net, while the only other Wellington player to chance their arm in the second spell was Greenacre, whose splendid round-the-corner volley, on receipt of an angled Lochhead cross, would have been an early contender for 'Goal of the Season' had it been three yards lower - certainly Kennedy could do nothing but gape in awe as it flew past him. Vignaroli, however, was the star turn, be he charging down a Hearfield half-volley in the 53rd minute, or, more conventionally, creating problems for a Wellington back-line which clearly copped the wrong end of Herbert's tongue during the half-time break - they were noticeably less flimsy, but they were still flimsy nonetheless. In the 61st minute, Newcastle's Italian recruit picked out Triantis with a peach of a pass, the recipient duly sweeping the ball wide into Song's stride. Elrich was racing up in support, and Song, after taking on Lochhead, slipped the ball into the fullback's path. Elrich unleashed a low first-time drive from the edge of the penalty area which Paston could only parry. But with Petrovski closing in for the kill, Manny Muscat stepped in to spare Wellington's blushes this time round. Fourteen minutes from time, Vignaroli's final contribution to the match prior to his substitution a minute later was to present Milicevic with a delicious pass, weighted to perfection, after the centre-back had, not for the first time, stormed out of defence and laid the ball off before carrying on his forward foray. Milicevic took the sphere on in his stride and swept a pinpoint cross to the far post which Hoffman met with a diving header. The ball flashed inches past Paston's right-hand upright - the move deserved better fate. And so did Newcastle, whose enterprise contrasted starkly with Wellington's lack of attacking initiative, Bertos excepted. In the end, justice was served, with the home team clinching the points four minutes from time courtesy youthful exuberance aplenty. Substitutes Sean Rooney and Jason Naidovski had been given their head by new coach Branko Culina in the final twenty minutes, and when the former was released down the left by Thompson's ball down the flank, they paid their manager back in the best manner possible. Faced with just Sigmund for company - Durante was once again missing, presumed having a good time, Rooney took on the defender and outpaced him in order to create the space for a cross into the heart of the goalmouth. In between defenders lurked Naidovski, whose unchallenged header zoomed past Paston's despairing dive to clinch a welcome and well-earned 3-2 win for Newcastle. Newcastle:     Kennedy; Elrich, Costanzo, Milicevic (booked, 73), D'Apuzzo (booked, 20); Song, Vignaroli (Rooney, 77), Triantis (Topor-Stanley, 90), Thompson; Petrovski (Naidovski, 69), Hoffman Wellington:     Paston; Muscat, Sigmund, Durante, Lochhead (booked, 59); Hearfield (Walsh, 77), McKain (booked, 48), Brown, Bertos; Ifill (Daniel, 69), Greenacre Referee:     Chris Beath