A-League soccer, 2023: Coach Arthur fumes at 'crazy' date for Australia Cup play-off after Jets drop to 10th

The timing of the knock out qualifier, which is slated for the July 8-9, has raised the ire of clubs around fitness and player welfare.

Player contracts start on July 1, which couples with the first week of preseason.

Last year the play-offs were held during the first week of the finals series before the start of the offseason.

"Under PFA (players union) rules, players need to have five weeks off [at the end of the season]," Jets coach Arthur Papas said. "Then there will be new players who come in. Contracts start on July 1 and to schedule a game for July 8 or 9 is crazy. I hope a bit of logic and rationale gets applied to this and we look after the players' welfare."

It will be the third straight year that the Jets have played a qualifier after finishing in one of the bottom four places on the A-League table.

The Jets accounted for Perth 3-1 last May to progress to the main draw.

It could be a very different looking Jets side come July, with captain Matt Jurman, striker Beka Mikeltadze and home-grown midfielder Angus Thurgate among 10 players off contract.

Thurgate has been linked to a big-money deal at Western United and Macarthur are among a host of teams interested in Mikeltadze.

"I am aware of some of the ones we are losing," Papas said without identifying the players. "We have, what I think from a club point of view, made good offers to a couple. We are not competing with some clubs in this league. That is very clear.

"We will lose a couple and that means others will get opportunities. We look for the next batch who can hopefully take this club forward into the final series."

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Lucas Mauragis' is expected to return from a loan deal with Wellington.

The Jets have also lured left-sided attacker Jacob Dowse back home from Perth Glory on a two-year deal.

There has been speculation that Western Sydney duo, left back Daniel Wilmering and striker Kusini Yengi, will move up the freeway. Western United keeper Ryan Scott is also reportedly in the club's sights.

Papas will spend the next fortnight evaluating the team's - and his performance - after the club missed the finals for a fifth straight season.

"There has been a lot of progress," he said. "When I arrived here two years ago, we were 18 points outside the six. Last year we finished 10 points outside, this year it was six points. For me that is progress, but it's not enough.

"I feel that we are closer to being a finals team. Up until last week, we were right in the mix. We could play a lot better more consistently over the course of a season. I have to reflect and understand why that hasn't happened. The first person that needs to be assessed is myself and why that is the case. Is it recruitment, is it a matter of the process of coaching? There are a lot of factors that contribute to performance."

The Jets' 2-0 loss to Sydney FC on Saturday was symptomatic of their season.

Needing a miracle to climb into the top six, the Jets conceded goals to Adam Le Fondre (29th minute) and replacement Pat Wood (63rd).

"In the boxes they were more clinical," Papas said. "We conceded a really soft goal [from a goalkeeping error]. We got back into it, but we were just short. We are short when it comes to executing in the box and creating the type of quality chances you need to win games like this."