Newcastle Jets got back to winning ways by thrashing 10-man Melbourne Victory 4-1 in the A-League on Thursday.
The Jets coughed up top spot in the table last week in an error-strewn display against Sydney FC and the home fans at McDonald Jones Stadium may have feared the worst when Kosta Barbarouses half-volleyed a spectacular opener into the top corner in the fifth minute.
New Zealand international Barbarouses' first goal since returning to Victory only served to inspire Newcastle, though, and they were level eight minutes later through Daniel Georgievski's similarly spectacular strike, left-footed into the top corner.
But the game pivoted on a 27th-minute melee sparked by a Georgievski tackle, which saw Victory midfielder Mark Milligan dismissed for raising his hands to two opposition players.
Kevin Muscat's side struggled to cope with the deficit and were behind at half-time thanks to Andrew Nabbout's tap-in.
Nabbout turned provider with 15 minutes to play, his quick-thinking from a throw-in putting Joseph Champness clear to score and the former Victory striker stole in at the back post again seven minutes from the end to add gloss to the result.
The Jets are once again top after this win, with Sydney hosting Brisbane Roar on Saturday, while Victory's five-match unbeaten run has come to an end.
