Long-term Jets fans have, for more than 15 years, gathered much of the former, and required even more of the latter to remain loyal and sane. Sunday's visit from the bottom-placed Wellington Phoenix provided another addition to the file.

The greybeards among us might have recognised the danger signs - the team were on a good run, playing at home against a side who had played midweek and slipped down the ladder, so three points seemed likely.

Alarm bells were ringing and Jets coach Craig Deans sensed that pre-game, doing what he could to guard against potential complacency. To be fair to the playing group, they are well aware and grounded enough to acknowledge there is not a lot of difference between the top and bottom teams, particularly it seems this season. And they wouldn't have forgotten Wellington had controlled long periods of their previous clash in Wollongong in round five.

So if we rule out complacency, and I certainly am, what went wrong? You can make a case for poor concentration, missed opportunities, a touch of tiredness in some legs, some bad luck at critical moments (see deflected first goal) and, if you're desperate, the time-wasting tactics of the opponents. And throw in the weather for good measure.

The truth is the Jets were not a whole lot different to the team who had been undefeated in the five previous matches, but the game's circumstances were. Wellington took the lead against the run of play, and that allowed them to play a little more conservatively than usual, denying Newcastle space they exploit effectively through their mobility and athleticism.

It's not rocket science. Wellington's fullbacks stayed at home, wide players dropped in and provided extra protection, and the Jets struggled to breakdown a committed and organised rearguard. It happens to many teams, all over the world, every weekend.

The likes of Manchester City, Bayern Munich and, to a lesser extent these days, Barcelona deal with it every game but are blessed with superior talent, generally better athletes, 70 per cent of the ball every week and hence much more practice at breaking down packed defences. So I guess I'm suggesting, don't lose faith because of one frustrating loss. The Jets will be competitive in most games this season, as I wrote earlier on, and they will win some and lose some. Macarthur have grabbed a lot of headlines, played as many games as the Jets, and sit two games clear of them with two thirds of the season to play. Hardly irretrievable.

Sydney, after consecutive defeats, have dropped to eighth with the same points as the Jets but with two games in hand. They have been victims of circumstance, and profligate finishing of late, and have eased to $4.50 to win the minor premiership, having been $2.50 a fortnight or so ago. The Jets have been somewhat snubbed by the good people at Sportsbet and are $4.50 to make the top six, with only Melbourne Victory at a longer quote. I don't know about you, but I might be doing a bit of shopping this week.

Adelaide away on a Friday night is never the easiest assignment, but they have a youngish team who like to have a crack and the Jets will get opportunities to run and gun. Adelaide have high pace in the front third but have conceded 18 goals in nine games, so the Jets should relish a flowing contest.

Those of you who watched the Diamanti-Berisha show for Western United against Victory the other day got a real treat. Any youngsters out, there do yourself a favour and check it out. It was a clinic in crossing and finishing. Crossing, in particular, is an area where the Jets can really improve.

And the Jets have a real opportunity to do just that with their position on the ladder on Friday night in the city of churches. No prayers required, but fingers crossed for a share of the luck.