Newcastle Jets coach Gary van Egmond has given his players a spray in the wake of Tuesday's shock loss to State League club Sydney Olympic.

The Jets went down 2-1 to Olympic, prompting a verbal barrage from van Egmond.

"They got a rocket this morning to try and get them out of their lethargy, but its purpose was give them game time and we had a look at a few more triallists," van Egmond said yesterday.

"You use the old analogy, would the Newcastle Knights lose against Lakes United, for example?

"So for us it's not acceptable. We can't lose against sides like that no matter what team we put out, and I expect more."

Although the result wasn't positive, van Egmond said it would serve the side well, especially heading into next week's Asian Champions League clash against Pohang Steelers.

"The game against Olympic for us was perfect because a lot of the boys hadn't had 90 minutes or a lot of game time for some time, and we needed to have that hit-out," he added.

"That's why it was so important we had that hit-out against Olympic to ensure the cobwebs had been blown out. A few home truths have been spoken about and we're ready to play against Pohang."