Jets sign Finnish striker Kokko

Newcastle Jets have gone to the Finnish league to try to find the right finisher for the upcoming season, signing Aleksandr Kokko to a two-year deal.

Source: Helsingin Sanomat

Kokko, 29, has scored 54 goals in 102 games across four-and-a-half seasons for Rovaniemen Palloseura (RoPS) in the Finnish Veikkausliiga.

The signing is yet to be announced by Newcastle, who suffered a 3-1 loss to Melbourne Victory in their FFA Cup round of 32 match on Wednesday.

But Kokko’s departure has been announced in Finland, with the club’s fans being urged to come and see him play again in one or two more games before he departs for Australia.

The agent who brokered the two-year deal, Paddy Dominguez, told The World Game: “He’s over the 50 per cent strike-rate when it comes to goals per matches and that’s a very good achievement in anyone’s books.

“It’s easy to have a strike-rate of over 50 per cent if you’ve only played a handful of games, but to maintain it over 100-plus games is outstanding.

“Aleksandr has just got to finish off some playing commitments in Finland, but he will arrive here in the next week or two to link with Newcastle.”

The half-Finnish, half-Russian, 189cm tall forward comes in to replace Milos Trifunovic, who departed the Jets after not being able to give them the return they needed up front last season.

Hopefully, he will finish off in Finland without picking up an injury.