Melbourne Victory back in the six

After a tumultuous week off the field with the sacking of coach Mehmet Durakovic, Melbourne Victory are back in the top six after a comfortable 2-1 win over Newcastle Jets.

Incoming boss Jim Magilton was watching from the stands last night witnessing his new side capture all three points, and he would be rather pleased with the performance of marquee signing Harry Kewell who has struggled thus far.

The former Liverpool star has struggled to adapt to the Hyundai A-League this season, however last night showed he still has plenty of fight and football in him which was on show as early as the seventh minute as his delightful cross was turned in by Byun into his own net.

Interim coach Kevin Muscat was overjoyed with the way his side got back to winning ways, especially by the first half performance.

“It’s been a difficult few days, but today I think we were great and threatening throughout, especially in the first half”.

Victory continued to pile on the pressure in the second stanza, and eight minutes in their job was made easier as a last-man tackle by Tarek Elrich brought down Danny Allsopp, leaving referee Ryan Shepheard with no choice but to show a red card.

The home side continued to search for their second of the evening and it finally arrived in the 74th minute courtesy of another Byun own goal. This time Carlos Hernandez played through a magnificent ball to Thompson who unselfishly attempted to pass in the direction of Allsopp. His pass however was put into an empty net by the on rushing Byun.

The Newcastle defender did however play a key role in giving his side a glimmer of hope in the contest. With five minutes remaining, Byun delivered a great cross which was superbly tucked away by captain Griffiths.

Despite the defeat coach Gary Van Egmond was pleased with the performance of his troops.

“We played better than the game against Gold Coast, we have to continue working hard to buy into what we’re talking about”.

The win is only Victory's fourth of the season, although it is a positive start with new coach Jim Magilton waiting to take over. The former QPR boss has plenty of work ahead of him but with the players at his disposal the blue side of Melbourne should finally see more consistent performances and results in coming weeks.

If however performances continue in the manner we have seen throughout this season, Melbourne Victory can all but say goodbye to their quest of becoming A-League Champions for the third time.