An improved start and defending key moments better will be the focus as Newcastle prepare to launch their 2022-23 A-League Women's (ALW) campaign in Brisbane next Saturday.
They were two key takeaways for Ash Wilson after the Jets drew 2-2 with Sydney FC in a trial match at Macquarie University on Saturday.
Overall, the Jets coach was buoyed by the showing against the competition heavyweights.
It came after Newcastle had also drawn 2-2 with Western Sydney Wanderers one week earlier in their only other trial hit-out against ALW opposition in a short five-week pre-season.
"The first 20 minutes, we probably let them have a little too much of the ball and we were turning over possession a bit cheaply and trying to force things, so we were under the pump for the first 20," Wilson said.
"We conceded in that time and that's something we'll need to review. You use these trials for different reasons and it's a quality team and it's a starting point. I'm not reading too much into it.
"I was happy with some key moments. There are still moments that we need to tidy up and be more consistent with. If you go behind after 20 minutes in an A-League match, sometimes it's quite difficult to find yourself getting back into those games.
"So we need to make sure that we start better next week, but the girls are going to take a lot of positives from the game."
Scoring twice for the second week in the row was one positive.
After being 1-0 down at the break, the Jets found the back of the net in the second half through their all-time leading scorer Tara Andrews then American import Sarah Griffith.
Andrews will be targeting more goals in her 13th Jets campaign after producing only two in nine appearances last season.
The twice-capped Matilda is coming off a strong NPLW Northern NSW campaign with premiers and champions Warners Bay in which she scored 27 goals.
Griffith, who is on loan from Chicago Red Stars, also scored against Wanderers.
Defensive midfielder Cassidy Davis missed the match on Saturday through illness and central defender Taren King did not play as she continues to work her way back from a knee injury.
The remaining 15 contracted players were all used against Sydney.
"We got a lot of good minutes into players that we can see as being starters for next week," Wilson said.
"That was important, to be able to give those people who are likely starting 11 players close to 90 or 90 minutes and see how we could combine and work for that 90 minutes."
The Jets finished eighth in a 10-team competition last season, taking just one point from their last eight games.
After Brisbane in round one, Newcastle travel to Tamworth to play Wanderers (November 26) before hosting Perth at No.2 Sportsground on December 3.
The league has expanded to 11 teams and 18 games - an extra four from last campaign - with the addition of newcomers Western United.
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