The Newcastle Jets remain tight-lipped as A-Leagues grand final backlash continues

While the A-Leagues grand final crisis engulfs the league, the Newcastle Jets are one of just a few clubs not to have made a public statement.

The Newcastle Jets remain one of just two A-Leagues clubs yet to make a statement to fans and members following the controversial decision to sell the hosting rights to the men’s and women’s A-Leagues grand finals to Sydney for the next three years.

As the anger and discontent from the decision – originally announced by the Australian Professional Leagues (APL) on Monday – spills into its fifth day, Jets management have not broken their silence on the matter, despite most other clubs addressing the issue with their fans.

Newscorp contacted the Jets for comment via email on both Wednesday and Thursday. After not receiving a response, Newscorp followed up with Jets head office on Friday morning, shortly after which it received an email from the club’s media officer with the following statement: “As a club our preference is to not comment on this matter.”

As of 4:30pm on Friday afternoon, the Jets and Macarthur FC are the only clubs not to have issued an official public statement on the issue.

Danny Townsend at the announcement that Sydney would host the A-Leagues grand finals for the next three years. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images for APL)

In comments published in the Newcastle Herald on Wednesday, Jets’ executive chairman Shane Mattiske briefly touched on the issue, saying that although he would like the club to be able to “earn the right to host a grand final”, the APL “has to make decisions for the whole of the game and build a strong financial foundation.”

The lack of direct communication from the club has left many fans angry and in the dark about Jets management’s position on the grand final decision and any role they may have had in rubber-stamping it.

Although the Jets do not have a member on the APL board, the body that ultimately voted to go ahead with the deal, APL CEO Danny Townsend has claimed that all clubs were consulted before it was announced.

A number of clubs have since disputed Townsend’s claim of being consulted, which has raised further questions about whether club officials knew about the decision before it was announced to the media on Monday.

Jets’ executive chairman Shane Mattiske attended a meeting of A-League Men’s clubs on Tuesday, and his name was printed on the bottom of a press release reaffirming the APL’s original decision.

In protest to the original decision to move the next three grand finals to Sydney, a number of supporter groups have announced protests or partial boycotts of the club.

Terrace Novocastria, the active support group of the Jets’ A-League Men’s side, announced that they would vacate their normal Bay two seats and “cease active activities” after 20 minutes of tonight’s home clash against the Brisbane Roar, in protest to what the group described as a “baseless decision”.

Meanwhile W-Jets Active, an active supporter group of the club’s A-League Women’s team, released a statement criticising the actions of the APL.

“Setting the grand final in Sydney devalues a team’s achievement in finishing first at the end of a home and away season,” the group wrote in a lengthy statement on Monday, before adding: “We cannot accept this decision without speaking out and we call on the ALW and ALM community to come together to compel the APL and all clubs to do better.”

The Jets hosted the Melbourne Victory at McDonald Jones Stadium in the 2018 A-League Men’s grand final. (AAP Image/Darren Pateman)

After coming second in the 2017/18 regular season and qualifying as the best-placed team into the decider, the Jets famously hosted the 2018 men’s grand final against Melbourne Victory in front of a full house at McDonald Jones Stadium in what was seen as a boon for football locally.

Under the APL’s plan, the Jets would never again have the opportunity to host the A-League’s biggest day.

An additional layer of intrigue is the Jets’ ownership situation. Since January 2021 the club has been in the remarkable position of having its licence controlled by a consortium of rival clubs led by Sydney FC, the Western Sydney Wanderers and Western United.

There has been speculation that the club is close to finding a new owner, with Townsend telling ESPN on December 7: “We‘ve been public about the journey that the Jets have been on with its current ownership and the fact that we’ve been looking for the right owner for that club,” he said. “And we’re certainly pretty close to finalising that and when they’re very ready that announcement, I’m sure, will take place.”