JETS coach Arthur Papas hopes the fighting spirit his players showed in Sunday's 1-all draw with Western United can be the catalyst for a charge towards the finals over the second half of the season.
After seven defeats in their previous nine games, Newcastle found themselves under even greater pressure when the defending champions opened the scoring in the 14th minute.
But they responded three minutes later with a superb strike from winger Daniel Stynes and were unlucky not to steal a late win when Trent Buhagiar misdirected a volley from close range.
Papas said he noticed a "shift in their mentality" after Newcastle conceded, which highlighted the unity within his squad.
"It's really easy when you're losing games to think that somehow there's something wrong within the group," Papas said.
"It's actually not the case, to be honest.
"The group, in terms of how they go about training and being together, there's some really strong bonds in that team.
"What's important is that how they get along off the field translates to on the field."
Papas described the result as "something to build on" and noted that the Jets were still within striking distance of the top six, despite their recent lean trot.
"We haven't had the best run, but we're three points outside the six, almost at the mid-point of the season," he said.
"And I just think there's a hell of a lot of growth to come."
Mark Natta, Brandon O'Neill and Callum Timmins were unavailable against Western United, while Reno Piscopo came off the bench despite a niggling injury.
Papas expects to have a full contingent on deck for Sunday's clash with third-placed Western Sydney Wanderers at McDonald Jones Stadium.
"When we've got this kind of squad, we've really got to make sure that our best players are on the park," Papas said.
"I don't think there are any others in the casualty ward.
"We'll have a really tough game this week at home and we'll put on a good performance ...
"I expect all of them back this week, so that's the hope and that will give us some headaches, because the boys that played today and the whole group acquitted themselves really well, and that competition is healthy."
Natta, the 20-year-old central defender, will no doubt be eager to line up against his former club.
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