Adeliade remains top of the group after playing out a scoreless draw with the Newcastle Jets in Round 2 of the 2008 Pre-Season Cup at Cessnock’s Baddeley Park. In front of 2,756 people on a chilly Hunter Valley evening, the match failed to reach any great heights, although there were a number of positive signs for both coaches.

In a first half that saw Adelaide United with the only real chances, The Reds nearly had the perfect start just 17 seconds after the kick-off when Cristiano found Brazilian counterpart Alemao on the right hand side of the box. Alemao put a neat ball into the path of Travis Dodd but from 11 metres, he sent his shot wide with just the keeper to beat.

Despite starting the better, The Reds got a scare in the 14th minute when defender Sasa Ognenovski sent a back pass looking for Eugene Galekovic, but it failed to find the Reds keeper and went narrowly wide of the post. That was the closest Newcastle managed to come in the opening 45 minutes.

10 minutes before half time Dodd had another opportunity to give United the lead, a perfect pass from Cristiano finding the dashing midfielder on the run but from 25 metres he sent it over the bar.

The Reds conjured up one last chance in the opening half when Cassio tried his range from 25 metres, but his left footed rocket again sailed high.

Scott Jamieson, who started the game at left back, showed enough in the first half to get United supporters excited heading into the season, and he was replaced by Jason Spagnuolo at the break after picking up a slight knock to the knee.

The opening half also saw Daniel Mullen get his first start for the club, lining up at right back, which allowed Alemao to play higher up the field, while Cassio played in a left midfield role.

The match turned into an arm wrestle after the break, Newcastle having their first chance in the 52nd minute when Korean playmaker Jin Hyung Song forced a save out of Galekovic.

Cristiano, who was toiling hard as United’s lone striker with the absence of the injured Paul Agostino, could not manage to find the back of the net but displayed enough class to suggest he will be one of the finds of the season.

As both teams went searching for a winner, it was Spagnuolo who had United’s final two opportunities, the skilful midfielder showing glimpses of his 2006/07 form which saw him win the club champion award. In the 74th minute an Alemao through ball found Dodd on the right hand side, who in turn laid a pass ontto Spagnuolo, but his shot was blocked as he tried to hit the target.

Then at the death Spagnuolo went close again when the ball fell favourably to him from a corner, but his attempt from the penalty spot was deflected away from goal to leave the result 0-0.

At the back, Ognenovski, who was playing his first Pre-Season Cup match for Adelaide, and Angelo Costanzo kept things tight, making life difficult for the Newcastle forwards. Michael Valkanis did not make the trip to Newcastle after being left out of the travelling squad after the team’s final training session in Adelaide.

Adelaide United Coach Aurelio Vidmar was relatively pleased with the performance and says his team will continue to work on a number of areas, particularly in the attacking third as the start of the Hyundai A-League 2008/09 Season draws closer.

“I thought it was pretty good game played at a pretty quick tempo. We started off really well and probably should have scored in the first minute, and after that we fell in a bit of a hole and didn’t really push up as high as we should have been,” Vidmar said.

“We fixed it up in the second half and I think we controlled a good period of the second 45 minutes. We had a lot of action in the front third but it was the same as last week, we just lacked that quality final pass. I think we’ve got a fair bit to work on but it’s quite exciting.”

United next face Perth Glory in Mount Gambier on Saturday 2 August (Kick-Off 2.30pm ACST) in the final round of the competition. The team that finishes top after the three rounds will progress to the Pre-Season Cup Final to be played on Wednesday, August 9.

Match Details
Newcastle Jets 0
Adelaide United 0
Crowd: 2756 @ Baddeley Park, Cessnock NSw