A-League coach Rob Stanton goes on bizarre rant about young Newcastle Jets players with ‘silver spoon’ in their mouths and urges them to ‘punch on’

An Australian football coach has slammed a generational issue for the reason his young side has lost four games in a row.

The Newcastle Jets in the Australian A-League suffered another loss on the weekend, beaten 1-0 by by the Adelaide Reds.

In sapping conditions at McDonald Jones Stadium on Saturday, the Reds took the lead through Stefan Mauk during a dominant opening.

Despite Ben Folami’s 64th-minute red card the host’s increasingly desperate efforts, Adelaide was able to see the game out.

That led to an altercation between frustrated Jets teammates Eli Adams and Wellisol.

Instead of making excuses for their confrontation, Newcastle coach Rob Stanton applauded it. 

The coach said he might bring boxing gloves to training to get his young players to ‘punch on’

‘I hope they have more altercations,’ he said.

‘I hope they start, you know, letting each other know.

‘Because that’s probably half the problem there. They’re too nice to each other.

‘I might bring some boxing gloves in, let them punch on. Because you know what? They need it, they actually need it.

‘I need to get some of the spoons out of their mouths, silver spoons, and teach them this is your opportunity.’

‘You need to fight for this club. You need to fight for the fans.

‘That’s a problem mate. I’m sorry, it’s a a generational problem where we are right now, in my opinion.

‘We don’t have to work, sorry, I know you’re young boys but I’m just saying, it’s the way you’re brought up.

The coach’s comments come after teammates Eli Adams and Wellisol had a confrontation after the Adelaide loss

‘You need to look at the history of the way this country was built, it was built with these hands of people that came here.

‘You need to appreciate what they’ve done for you.

‘When you walk on the pitch, the fans see that. They see when you fight.

‘They will clap you when you fight, they will boo you when you don’t fight.’

Some supporters felt the coach had gone too far.

‘What will those players think of this? How will they feel towards the leader delivering this so publicly? Is this likely to improve motivation or even trust,’ asked one Jets fan.

‘His comments to the players as they played were condescending. No wonder they are on a slump. Not good leadership,’ added another.

Others applauded his honesty.

‘Oh no Rob has hurt their little feelings lol harden up goodness. Agree with him,’ posted one supported.

‘Love the raw honesty from Robbie, it’s so true. Hopefully they will take it on board and turn things around,’ another said. 

Unbeaten Adelaide moved into second on the A-League Men table after defeating the Jets.

The three points earned see them vault Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory in the standings, albeit the latter can reclaim their spot should they defeat Perth Glory on Sunday afternoon.

Jumping on the Jets quickly, Adelaide could have been ahead in the fourth minute when a heavy touch from Aleksandar Susnjar was pounced on by Archie Goodwin, only for the former Jet to have his effort saved by Ryan Scott.

A bevy of chances followed until Mauk finally converted in the 14th minute, turning in a Goodwin cross that had bounced off Scott to mark his 150th ALM appearance with a goal.