NEW recruit Clayton Taylor heads a group of young tyros who shape as potential bargaining chips in the quest to secure a new owner for the Newcastle Jets.
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The Jets have been under the interim ownership of fellow A-League clubs since January, 2021, and have been officially on the market since October 22, when it was announced investment firm KordaMentha had been appointed to source alternative options and broker a deal.
It is understood that negotiations with an organisation that runs football franchises overseas are close to fruition but will not be completed by the "prior to Christmas" timeline KordaMentha initially envisaged.
The first step will be to secure a heads of agreement, after which both the Australian Professional Leagues, the body that manages the A-League competitions, and Football Australia will conduct due diligence on the prospective owners.
Jets executive chairman Shane Mattiske said on Thursday that discussions had been "progressing positively" but was unwilling to speculate about when an agreement might be reached.
"The focus has been on getting a deal before the end of the year, and that remains the focus," Mattiske told the Newcastle Herald.
"The good thing is we've had some really positive engagement and there are people who view the club as an attractive proposition.
"There are a number of factors that make the Jets attractive.
"The region has a great heritage, in that football has been played here since 1884.
"We've got a strong fan base, with over 8000 members, and great community and corporate support.
"And importantly we've got some great young talent coming through in both our men's and women's teams."
That talent includes Taylor, the 19-year-old midfielder Newcastle recruited from Sydney FC's youth team at the end of last season.
Taylor, who made his A-League debut against Perth in round one and has now scored three goals in eight games, signed a two-year deal with Newcastle but has already attracted attention from overseas clubs.
Mattiske confirmed there was interest in Taylor but stressed that the club "definitely" wanted to retain him.
Nonetheless, youngsters such as Taylor, Mark Natta, Lucas Mauragis, Archie Goodwin and Apostolos Stamatelopoulos are all potential assets for the Jets on two fronts.
Firstly, if they stay at the club, they should only improve as they mature and gain experience.
Alternatively, if they were to head overseas, Newcastle would receive compensation in the form of transfer fees.
Mattiske was hopeful potential owners would recognise the value in buying a club that, through necessity, has long relied on a youth policy and has access to one of the largest junior nurseries in Australia.
"Our academy is set up to develop young talent from the age of 12, all the way through, both boys and girls," Mattiske said.
