Warland, though, wants to be known as more than just a kid filling the breach, which he's likely to do again on Sunday against Western Sydney Wanderers at McDonald Jones Stadium.

The 19-year-old was a game day addition to the starting side last week in the 2-1 loss to Macarthur when Jordan Elsey was forced out with COVID-19.

In round one against Central Coast, Warland was on in the 16^th minute when Jason Hoffman limped off.

With Elsey certain to be sidelined again, Warland is set to have more time to prepare for major minutes on Sunday when the Jets play in front of an empty stadium due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

But for Warland, it doesn't matter.

"Whether you are starting or not, you've got to prepare like you are starting because things like this do happen," Warland said.

"It can happen within a matter of minutes, it can happen the day before, on game day or a few minutes before the first whistle blows, so you always have to be ready."

Warland was also ready to take his chance at Newcastle, after just five A-League appearances at Perth last season. He believed the challenge at the Jets was bringing out the best in him as Newcastle try to tighten their defence, which has leaked eight goals in five games.

"I'm a young defender but I also want to be vocal, I want to be loud, I want to be a leader," he said.

"I'm not just a young kid in the backline, I don't see that. Age is just a number for myself.

"And it's not just the defence, it's the whole team together. There's no individuals, we're a team, we're a family, the whole club.

"So we've been working hard together and we'll go again this weekend."

The Jets will also likely again be without midfielder Angus Thurgate, who is out of isolation following his bout of COVID-19 but now fighting to regain fitness. Wanderers, who sit alongside Newcastle on five points, announced on Thursday that they had a positive case in their playing ranks.

Jets coach Arthur Papas was unsure when his affected starters would return.

"I'm just waiting on some clarity on the rules with all this stuff, on how many days and obviously their health and where it's at, so I don't really have an answer on it," Papas said.

"We're undergoing a lot of tests here as well obviously because of where Newcastle is at. There's been a few situations which we hope resolve themselves.

"It's something that hourly you keep having to adjust to and adapt, and you've just got to be ready for any scenario."

Papas said left-back Dylan Murnane, who came off in the 15^th minute last week, could play on Sunday. He said Murnane had a nerve problem against Macarthur and lost feeling in his foot, but he had recovered and trained this week.

Newcastle dominated early but missed chances before gifting the Wanderers opportunities in a 2-2 draw in round two.

It's been a theme for the Jets, who have been brilliant at times in attack, scoring 10 goals, but also prone to defensive lapses. Papas said his side just needed to be better in all facets.

"I keep hearing about goals conceded, but no one mentions that we've scored the most goals in the league as well," he said. "So I think that's something that should be mentioned because for a new team that's come together as well, we're very strong going forward, and that's part of our challenge, to be better, to maintain certain levels going forward but also to become tighter defensively."

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