The Newcastle Jets have been working towards this point since the first day of pre-season — a chance to secure a home grand final for their success-starved fans. They take on Sydney FC in the home leg of the semi-final series at what is almost certain to be a full house at McDonald Jones Stadium on Saturday.
Eli Adams' runaway goal in the 58th minute earned the Jets a 1-all draw in an epic first leg at Allianz Stadium. Some of the Jets' biggest moments in a record-breaking campaign have been at McDonald Jones Stadium. None were bigger than the 4-0 annihilation of arch-rivals Central Coast in front of 20,930 fans before lifting the Premiers Plate.
But midfielder Max Burgess, who was outstanding against Sydney on Saturday, stressed playing at home does not guarantee a win. "Going home is an advantage but you have to earn a performance and then hopefully the outcome takes care of itself," he said after the draw with Sydney.
"We're looking forward to playing in front of a big Newie crowd. They've been unbelievable for us this year. They have been our 12th man. Even tonight, our fans were incredible. The away bay was full when we came out to warm up. It gave us that extra buzz. It was the same in the Australia Cup final that we played down in Melbourne. It was the same sensation they gave us. They are brilliant fans, and they deserve to be playing in finals."
The Jets did it the hard way against the Sky Blues. They had to absorb a ton of pressure, went behind in the 50th minute, but found a way back. "It's another example of the resilience of this group," Burgess said. "It was a really hard match. They threw a lot at us, and there's a lot of learnings we can take into the second leg. There are a lot of areas where we can improve. But a lot of good things that we can take out of it as well. We will get back to work on Monday."
For the majority of the Jets squad, it was their first experience of finals football. "We handled it well," Adams said. "We've been faced with a lot of adversity and challenges over the season and every time we've lifted and stepped up. Whether it was Deli making big saves, Lachie Bayliss, Max Burgess, Wilma, Clayton ... everyone stood up when they needed to be called upon. That's the reason we finished top of the table."
Adams' goal typified the Jets season. Ben Gibson released Clayton Taylor inside the Jets' half. The winger burned past two defenders, cut inside and then poked an inch-perfect through ball for Adams to lift into the roof of the net. It was Adams' fourth goal in the past three games and ninth of the campaign. "I have some pretty memorable ones this season and that's up there," he said.
Coach Mark Milligan praised the character of the Jets to come from behind and swing the tie in their favour. "That's part of this team's DNA now," he said. "We are going to be in a game because our mentality is to go and score a goal. Our mindset as a team is to go forward, be on the front foot. Even when we conceded that goal, I know at some point, we're gonna create an opportunity. Clayton Taylor gets himself in position where he can launch. Fantastic pass and Eli's in exactly where he should be."
