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Marc Janko was once again the hero for the Sky Blues with his 68th minute strike proving enough to take home all three points and move Sydney up into outright second on the A-League ladder.
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The Austrian has now notched up eight goals in the last six matches for Sydney and was showered with endearing praise by Sydney boss Graham Arnold.
“Marc apologised after the game and said he should have had three goals tonight, that’s how hard he is on himself,” Arnold said.
“But his quality came through with that one goal and at the moment he’s performing and the fans are loving him.
“His goal scoring record is phenomenal and that’s why we brought Marc to the country.”
The 31-year-old is off contract at the end of the season and the former Socceroos maestro admitted he is under pressure to keep the striker in sky blue.
“He openly admits that he wasn’t fit when he came out and it took him some time to adjust to the heat and the style of play but now he’s settled in well,” Arnold said.
“We brought him out here to score goals and now that he’s doing that he’s putting pressure on not only me but also the CEO.”
Arnold said that while his players were still feeling the effects of a tough Sydney derby last weekend he thought his troops were in control of the whole match.
“Last week took a lot out of the boys, it takes a lot out of you both physically and mentally,” said Arnold.
“There are no easy games in the A-League and we didn’t expect anything other than a difficult game against Newcastle.
“But I always felt we were always in control of the game and if we had taken our chances, particularly after half time, we could have made the game easier for ourselves.”
Both teams were hesitant in the opening stages of the match focusing on midfield domination and structured defending.
The first real chance of the match fell to Sebastian Ryall with the centre back heading against the crossbar off a set-piece and Janko’s follow-up skewed past Kennedy’s goal.
Minutes later Jets midfielder Mitch Cooper came close to giving the home team the lead when he shot across the face of goal following a surging run toward the Sydney box.
Sydney dominated in the opening stages of the second half but couldn’t convert multiple corners with Nikola Petkovic going the closest curling a shot just over the crossbar.
Jets new boy Enver Alivodic led the fight back for the home team, providing a repeated outlet down the right flank and aiding in Newcastle nearly snatching the lead midway through the second half but Andrew Hoole couldn’t direct his header past Sydney keeper Vedran Janjetovic.
However his efforts were to no avail as moments later Janko stole the ball off Ki-je’s feet and 8783 fans held their breath as his shot drove past Kennedy and into the top corner.
Jets boss Phil Stubbins said he was disappointed in the way in which the game was decided but was heartened by the efforts of his players.
“We created so good opportunities but we just fell a little bit short against a side that’s capable of winning the competition,” Stubbins said.
“It was obviously as shame in the manner in which we lost the game but the boys out there to a man gave it everything they’ve got.
“We’re growing as a club and if people can’t see that we’re moving in the right way then we’re all watching different games.”
The Jets will be looking to bounce back next weekend in their away trip to Melbourne City as they continue to search for their second win of the campaign, while Sydney will turn their attention to welcoming Brisbane Roar to the Sydney Football Stadium a week form Sunday.
Newcastle Jets: B. Kennedy, S. Neville (S. Gallagher 42'), T. Regan, D. Mullen, L. Ki-je, B. Kantarovski, Z. Caravella, M. Cooper (B. Lundy 81'), E. Alivodic, A. Hoole, E. Montano (R. Pavicevic 75')
Unused - J. Solari, J. Pepper
Sydney FC: V. Janjetovic, R. Grant, S. Ryall, N. Petkovic, M. Jurman, T. Antonis (A. Calver 93'), M. Dimitrijevic, C. Naumoff (R. Stambolziev 60'), B. Ibini-Isei (S. Smeltz 69'), M. Janko, A. Brosque
Unused - I. Necevski, P. Triantis