Fans sea of red and black for Western Sydney Wanderers match against Newcastle Jets

CAMPBELLTOWN Stadium was a sea of red and black on Saturday night as soccer fans turned out in force.

wanderes

CAMPBELLTOWN Stadium was a sea of red and black on Saturday night as soccer fans turned out in force for the Western Sydney Wanderers 2-1 victory over Newcastle Jets.

A crowd of 10,589 fans packed into the stadium for the A-League fixture, draped in Wanderers jerseys, scarfs and hats.

Western Sydney's die-hard supporters, the "Red and Black Bloc", distributed signs bearing the slogan "We sing for Wanderers" in preparation for the infectious chants.

The support overwhelmed the visitors, who couldn't match the Wanderers' attacking style of play and fell behind to a Youssouf Hersi goal in the 45th minute.

Western Sydney continued their ferocious attack in the second half and found a hole in the Jets' defence in the 83rd minute, when Jerome Polenz found Mark Bridge with a superb long ball.

The cheers were especially loud for Bridge as fans lapped up the Mt Annan resident's eighth goal for the season.
Newcastle grabbed an injury-time consolation goal through a powerful Ruben Zadkovich strike.

The Wanderers jumped to second place with the victory and maintaining the spot could mean an automatic semi-finals berth.

Macarthur District Soccer Football Association general manager Glenn Armstrong said the match would have benefits for local soccer. ``The crowd was fantastic and the support for the Wanderers was overwhelming.

The rich soccer culture of the Macarthur region was evident at the game,'' he said.

"The match laid a foundation of support in Campbelltown. The next Wanderers game could sell out Campbelltown Stadium.''