Point Cook players were “distraught” in the rooms after the game and coach Craig Filer was shell-shocked.
Now the Jets have seven days to mull over the one that got away after the 4-3 loss to Maribyrnong Greens in the top-of-the-table clash at Skinner Reserve on Saturday in Football Federation Victoria’s state league 4 west.
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At the 70-minute mark, the Jets were cruising with a 3-1 lead only for the never-say-die Greens to bang home three goals in the remaining 20 minutes to make it a nightmare end for Filer and his players.
The Jets could have been five points clear on top of the ladder but instead are one point in arrears in second place.
And they have only themselves to blame for the predicament.
“It’s very hard to take, it’s very hard to stand on the touchline and watch us disintegrate like that,” Filer told Star Weekly.
“We had a 20-minute spell when they threw everything at us and we couldn’t cope with it, or we chose not to cope with it.
“Unfortunately for us, it comes down to one simple thing: we didn’t defend properly. Too many individual mistakes from players who should know better.”
The Jets initially thrived on the pressure of a first-versus-second blockbuster.
They controlled the bulk of play in the first half and were coasting for the 20 minutes after half-time.
The 2-1 lead at the break was extended five minutes into the second half when veteran striker Joe Spiteri knocked in his hat-trick goal to make it 3-1.
Spiteri’s third goal, his 11th of the season, should have been enough to see the Jets create a healthy buffer at the top of the ladder. But perhaps they got ahead of themselves.
“At that point, you could only see it going one way and we looked like we could go on to get four or five,” Filer said.
“But they scored within a couple of minutes of us and put the pressure on again.
“Maybe it was a case of taking the foot off the gas.”
Filer will undoubtedly earn his keep in the lead-up to this Saturday’s away bout with Melton Phoenix.
The first-year coach faces his biggest test in charge.
“My job now is to pick the boys up,” he said. “We’re still in the mix and we’ll be in the mix right until the end. The character of the team is good and I don’t believe I’ll have a problem picking them up. We will get it right.”
Elsewhere, Truganina Hornets lost 1-0 away to Sebastopol Vikings at St Georges Reserve, leaving them in the bottom half of the table.
In state league 3, Hoppers Crossing’s lead at the top of the standings was trimmed to four after a 1-1 draw against Whittlesea United at Thomas Street Reserve.
In the NPL, Werribee City went down 1-0 to title contender South Melbourne at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday evening.
