An undermanned Melbourne Victory have slumped to a second straight A-League Men defeat after the Newcastle Jets came from behind to snatch a 2-1 win at AAMI Park.
Victory took the ascendancy just before halftime through Jake Brimmer's first goal of the campaign, but Josh Brillante's dismissal just three minutes into the second stanza swung the game towards the visitors.
Valentino Yuel's 57th minute half-volley and Beka Mikeltadze's 70th minute penalty subsequently provided them with a lead they would not surrender as coach Arthur Papas' side moved into eighth place on the table.
Victory, conversely, have now lost two straight league games since winning the FFA Cup last week, and, thanks to COVID-19 and Cup-enforced delays, haven't won an ALM match since Boxing Day.
Falling to fifth with the defeat, coach Tony Popovic's side now sits just a point clear of seventh-placed Wellington Phoenix, who drew with Adelaide United earlier on Saturday.
After being forced to reckon with the Jets' press early in the contest, Victory showed signs of progress late on in the first half as Jason Davidson had a shot cleared off the line in the 35th minute and Brendan Hamill had a goal disallowed for offside in the 40th.
Brimmer's quick reaction to send Jack Duncan's block of a Marco Rojas effort two minutes into injury time gave them the advantage heading into the rooms.
However, Brillante's careless second yellow card threw the Jets a lifeline that was eagerly accepted.
With a one-man advantage, a perfectly weighted lob from Daniel Penha froze Victory keeper Ivan Kelava in place and was turned in by Yuel for the equaliser, before Mikeltadze won the game after Hamill tangled with Olivier Boumal and gave away a contentious spot-kick.
