It was a lethargic affair with Adelaide off the pace and their final ball lacking conviction, while Newcastle were happy to sit back and absorb pressure. 

Adelaide United were full of energy as they pinned Newcastle back to their 18-yard box for the first 20 minutes of the match. Craig Goodwin and Ryan Kitto were finding plenty of the ball out wide, with Daniel Georgievski and Ivan Vujica off the pace. 

Jordy Thomassen and George Blackwood in the central attacking positions weren't making the penetrating runs Kurz would expect while Craig Goodwin's final ball was seriously lacking. 

Midway through the first-half Goodwin managed to skip past Nigel Boogard on an Adelaide counter attack and through on goal but his cracking shot slammed the crossbar. The second half left much to the imagination with Newcastle running out of legs without a goal to show for their efforts. 

NEWCASTLE JETS 

Glenn Moss - 7

While Newcastle were under pressure, Moss was there to hold onto Adelaide's tame goal attempts. 

Daniel Georgievski - 5

Good on the ball early, winning the 50/50s although he lost the ball in advanced positions to Craig Goodwin, who fashioned chances for Adelaide.

Nigel Boogard - 7

Let down by the full-backs who were being beaten constantly by Adelaide's wingers. Smarter defending saved Newcastle from going down early. 

Nikolai Topor-Stanley - 7.5

A commendable opening stanza as Newcastle rode the Adelaide storm whilst Topor-Stanley and Boogard had to deal with the brunt of fast counter-attacks. As we know pace aren't exactly fortes in the duo's repertoire.

Ivan Vujica - 6.5

Vujica was pinned to his backline, absorbing the pressure given by Ryan Kitto and Strain. Vujica has decent technique when it comes to crossing and with the few he managed to get away he put Adelaide under pressure. 

Ben Kantarovski - 6

Kantarovski didn't put nearly enough pressure on Adelaide's midfielders especially as they encroached on the 18-yard box. His poor match didn't help Matt Ridenton who struggled also. 

Matt Ridenton - 5.5

Loose passing from the Kiwi left the defenders in a lurch with Adelaide's constricting press. Ridenton seriously had a tough time with Adelaide's approach and couldn't settle into the match.

Jair - 6

When Jair managed to get onto the ball, his intuitive ability helped to build confidence in Newcastle's build up but his midfield partner Ronny Vargas was sorely missed. He didn't help himself in the second half with some terrible decisions in the box. 

Dimi Petratos - 6.5

Petratos struggled to hold onto possession and find space to make an impact. When Newcastle moved the ball quicker Petratos was able to play balls in behind for O'Donovan. 

Roy O'Donovan - 5

A golden opportunity finally came a third into the match but the poacher couldn't get on the end of Vujica's far post ball that bounced past Marrone. O'Donovan completely missed a free header from Jackson's superb cross.

Kaine Sheppard - 5

Sheppard never had sustained possession or opportunities in the final third. No shots, no goals. 

Substitutes

Joey Champness - 6

Champness was introduced to provide some more manoeuvrability in the front line.  

Steven Ugarkovic - 6

The move needed to be made to replace Ridenton with Ugarkovic coming in with a level and composed head in midfield. 

Lachlan Jackson - N/A

ADELAIDE UNITED

Paul Izzo - 7

Izzo sat back and enjoyed the Newcastle afternoon sun as Adelaide's defensive back four dealt with the tame onslaught by Newcastle. 

Scott Galloway - 7

Galloway was relishing in Adelaide's attacking domination of the first half providing determined runs for Craig Goodwin. 

Michael Jakobsen - 7.5

The Danish defender was lapping up the aerial balls swung in to O'Donovan and co. Jakobsen didn't have much to be worried about besides an argument with the referee which earned him a yellow card. 

Michael Marrone - 7

Michael Marrone enjoyed his 200th A-League match. Although he only managed to take home a point, he'd be happy with the clean sheet playing in an unfamiliar centre-back role. 

Ryan Strain - 7

Strain had a good game marauding up and down the right flank. He was extremely comfortable defending against Newcastle while he always had room to move down his channel. 

Isaias - 6.5

Isaias was nearly camped up on the edge of the box in the first 15 minutes of the match as Adelaide dominated proceedings early. Some of his decisions were time costly and prevented Adelaide's attack moving more swiftly. 

Mirko Boland - 7

Terrific defending pickpocketing Petratos and to spring the counter attack. Boland and Isaias employed a terrific pressing game on the tired legs of Newcastle. 

George Blackwood - 5

Blackwood worked his way into the game but it was a tough night for the striker. His run was either the wrong one or the pass into the box was behind him. 

Craig Goodwin - 5.5

Adelaide's creative quality was off the pace with his crossing unable to hit any targets and capitalise on their pressure of Newcastle. Goodwin skipped past a sliding Boogard into the box and slammed a shot into the crossbar adding to his frustrations. 

Jordy Thomassen - 4.5

Thomassen was working the space well whilst dropping in although he was kept in the corner by Boogard and Topor-Stanley. 

Ryan Kitto - 6.5

Ryan Kitto looks to be enjoying playing alongside Jordy Thomassen who is working the space between defence and midfield where he can penetrate. A number of chances sprung up for Adelaide with Kitto stretching the defence. 

SUBS

Ken Ilso -

Ilso couldn't provide any sparks for Adelaide to find a winner. Along with Thomassen and Blackwood, he was indeed sparkless. 

Vince Lia - N/A

Nathan Konstandopoulos - N/A