Off-contract Jets co-captain Matthew Jurman believes he still has a lot to offer beyond this A-League season and he hopes to prove it to Newcastle in the second half of the campaign.
The 33-year-old former Socceroo played the full match against Western United in a 1-1 draw on Sunday in Ballarat but he has been unable to pin down a regular starting position this season.
Jurman started 21 times last season - his first with Newcastle - but he has just six appearances, including one off the bench, across the Jets' 12 games in 2022-23 after the arrival of Mark Natta.
He started alongside Carl Jenkinson in the centre of defence on Sunday, with Jordan Elsey on the bench and Natta sidelined. Natta is expected to be back against Western Sydney Wanderers on Sunday at McDonald Jones Stadium.
After an "up and down" season, Jurman said he was happy playing again last Sunday and he hoped to get more chances.
"I think I played well, I'm happy with my game," Jurman said. "It's been a bit tough for me to get consistency, not playing 90 minutes every week, so for me, I sort of need those 90-minute games, so it was good for me to get those in the legs."
The former Sydney, Brisbane and Western Sydney defender, who hails from Wollongong, said "I love it up here" in Newcastle and he hoped to extend his stay.
"It's not something I've been through for a while [not playing regularly], but for me, I'm a professional," he said. "I do what I need to do at training, prepare the same as always and just wait for my chance, as I did on the weekend, and hopefully I can get a good string of games now and put in some good performances.
"I'm off contract but I've still got a lot to offer. If it's here - I hope it is, but if it's not, I want to keep playing.
"I feel like my body is in a good condition and I'm always hungry to keep playing. I love the game and we'll see what happens."
Newcastle had four losses in a five-game stretch before last week's draw and Jets coach Arthur Papas has regularly changed his line-up in search of a winning combination. Jurman expected competition for spots to remain intense at training.
"Every week it's tough to pick who's going to play," he said. "We've got a good team and we've got a big game at home against the Wanderers so everyone's putting their best foot forward."
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