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He reckons Western Sydney are playing better football than this time last season, but coach Tony Popovic says the revamped team remain well short of their A-League potential. Lukasz Piszczek Jersey .The Wanderers blew a two-goal lead against Newcastle on Sunday, held to a draw in their first outing at temporary home ground Spotless Stadium.Popovic couldnt put his finger on why such a cohesive first half gave way to fragmented play that allowed Newcastle to capitalise, but was adamant there was still much work to be done if the leagues youngest outfit are to reach a fourth grand final in five years.Were nowhere near the level that we want the team to be, Popovic said.In the end they kept coming, and credit to them, but we certainly game them a chance.We werent good enough in our play in that last 30 minutes. Well get stronger, we know we will. Its a work in progress, regardless of the result.Well get more match fit and more cohesive, but we looked a very good team in the first half so thats probably ahead of where we were last year in terms of our football.Popovic absolved goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne of blame for two mistakes that directly led to late Jets goals for Nigel Boogaard and Andrew Hoole.First, Redmayne was caught adrift when Hooles free-kick allowed Boogaard to head home.Then the gloveman was booked for racing from his box to foul Morten Nordstrand before fumbling Hooles subsequent free-kick over the line and negating first-half goals to Aritz Borda and new captain Dimas.Mistakes happen in football, Popovic said.Nine times out of 10 its how goals are scored.He was less happy with speedy Jumpei Kusukami. despite the Japanese wingers standout display.I actually dont think he was that good, Popovic said.I dont think in the second half he played anywhere near what hes been able to do, which is a good sign for us.We see glimpses of what he can do daily which will happen once we get more match fit and more cohesive.A crowd of 13,247 turned out to watch the Wanderers in their first match at the oval-shaped AFL venue.The atmosphere was good when you consider its an AFL ground, Popovic said.The pitch was great to play on.The fans go home disappointed but bit by bit weve to try and make sure this is a fortress as much as Parramatta was. Julian Weigl Jersey .500 on the season. The Jets are now 0-5-1 in the second game of back-to-backs. The game started the same way the Vancouver game started the night before, with the Jets taking the first two penalties of the game and killing off the first, but the Oilers getting on the board first, scoring on the second man-advantage. Mahmoud Dahoud Jersey . Peter Holland and Brad Staubitz were sent to Toronto on Saturday as the Maple Leafs traded defenceman Jesse Blacker and draft picks to the Anaheim Ducks. http://www.footballdortmundpro.com/Customized/ . They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. Wisconsins victory lap from Lambeau Field to Madison was memorable if not for the miles traveled the distance covered between national expectations and those from inside the Badgers program.Saturday (3:30 ET) against Mid-American foe Akron, the 10th-ranked Badgers dont want to misplay the respect card.Wisconsin entered the season with questions regarding its quarterback, the ability to handle such a rugged schedule and concerns of a potential drop-off for the program after years of sustained success.The Badgers only had eight seniors on their two-deep roster for the opener against LSU.All those concerns, at least for a few weeks, were put aside following a shocking 16-14 win over No. 5 LSU in the season opener in Green Bay.I feel like we were out to gain respect, and I think we did it at the end of the day, Wisconsin linebacker T.J. Watt said.Akron beat VMI, 47-24, in its opener, with six touchdown passes from quarterback Tommy Woodson and 576 yards total offense. But a Saturday afternoon at Camp Randall will be a new challenge altogether, even if Akron coach Terry Bowden is 1-0 head-to-head against Wisconsin head coach Paul Chryst (Akron beat Pitt in 2014). Wisconsin is 2-0 all-time against Akron and won 38-17 in 2008 with 404 rushing yards.Bowden is 20-30 as Akron head coach, and hes not shy about the way the Zips want to win. Theyre throw, throw early, often and go deep when they do. In the first quarter Saturday, Akron had many miscues, but the Zips also had five pass plays of 20-plus yards.Its going to stress us out differently (than LSU), Chryst said. Theyre going to spread us out and weve got to play good assignment football.The MAC has a 10-year streak of scoring at least one upset over the Big Ten, and Western Michigan wiped out Northwestern last week. The history lesson is not lost on the Badgers.Some people might have a harder time, staying in the past and celebrating that victory a little too much, but I think were a real focused group, Watt said. Raphael Guerreiro Jersey. Weve already started watching film, breaking down Akron, so its just on to the next one.The Badgers (1-0) defied the odds by defeating an SEC powerhouse that returned 17 starters and many experts viewed as a potential playoff contender. Wisconsins defense forced three turnovers, running back Corey Clement had a big game and kicker Rafael Gaglianone made three field goals, including the winner with just under four minutes left. Clement rushed for 86 yards on a career-high 21 carries.Im excited about what the future holds for this defense and this Wisconsin badgers football team, senior linebacker Vince Biegel said.Akron had 13 penalties last week, including a defensive personal foul on a goal-to-go situation, missed two extra points and led 26-24 entering the fourth quarter. Bowden knows Saturday could be a reality check if the Zips dont pack discipline, and defense.Defensively ... you can see were still a work in progress, Bowden said.The immediate future for Wisconsin includes a drop-off in strength of opponents. After hosting Akron on Saturday and Georgia State the following week, the Badgers begin a stretch of games against ranked conference opponents -- at Michigan State and Michigan, home against Ohio State and at Iowa.These next two weeks are very important, Clement said. Im not saying these arent big games, but you talk about Michigan and Michigan State and all these other great opponents that are in the Big Ten, you want to go into those games with as much momentum as possible.Wisconsin inside linebacker Chris Orr is out for the season because of a season-ending knee injury suffered against LSU. The Badgers did not disclose the status of linebacker T.J. Edwards, who didnt play at LSU because of a fractured foot. ' ' '