Newcastle win for the first time in Sydney and move off foot of ladder

Newcastle Jets moved off the foot of the A-League ladder and into seventh place this afternoon after beating Sydney FC 3-1 away at Sydney Football Stadium before a crowd of 10,114..

Sydney remain second.

It was the first time Newcastle have beaten Sydney at their home ground since the inception of the A-League.

The Jets took the lead in the 24^th minute through a penalty, awarded for Ryan Grant’s foul on Song. Michael Bridges converted the spot-kick against his former club.

Sean Rooney almost added a second in the 34^th minute from the edge of the box, but his attempted chip hit the advancing goalkeeper Clint Bolton in the head and looped over the bar for a corner.

Bridges made it 2-0 in the 50^th minute. Matt Thompson won the ball in midfield and put Bridges through with a precise pass and the striker slotted the ball low past Bolton and just inside the net from the left of the box.

Thompson added the third in the 58^th minute.

Sydney survived a scare in the 70^th minute when some brilliant goalkeeping by Bolton and desperate defending prevented Newcastle from adding a fourth.

Sydney applied tremendous pressure on the visitors in the closing stages and, although Alex Brosque pulled a goal back in the 75^th minute from John Aloisi’s sharp cut-back from the left, they were unable to make up the leeway.