ANGRY Brisbane Roar coach Mike Mulvey has demanded the A-League be treated with greater respect rather than be forced to play second fiddle to an international age tournament.

Seventeen of the nation's best young players will miss at least three A-League rounds next month after being selected in the Australian squad for the Asian Football Confederation under-22 championships in Oman.

The remaining six members of the squad - including new Borussia Monchengladbach signing Kwame Yeboah - play for overseas clubs, who won't be obliged to release players due to the tournament being played on non-FIFA dates.

But Football Federation Australia won't give A-League clubs the option of keeping their players, a situation that annoys Mulvey.

The Roar will lose two players - defenders Corey Brown and James Donachie - to the tournament.

News_Image_File: Corey Brown will be missing for Brisbane Roar, on international duty.

Melbourne Victory are hardest hit, with four of their players chosen, while Perth Glory and Newcastle Jets each have three representatives.

However, despite scoring six goals this season, 20-year-old Jets striker Adam Taggart has not been selected by coach Aurelio Vidmar.

"I don't know what the direction is that's given to Aurelio, whether it's to pick the strongest players, or blood some players," Mulvey said.

"The only surprise for me when I was looking at the squad was if we're picking the best players that Adam Taggart was overlooked.

News_Rich_Media: Newcastle Jets coach Gary van Egmond was pleased with his side's transitional play after a switch of formation led to a 2-0 win over Brisbane Roar at Suncorp Stadium on Friday.

"It's a very difficult situation and I really feel for Aurelio Vidmar. He's the coach and he needs to pick the best players.

"It needs a mandate from FFA and it needs communication with the clubs."

An FFA spokesman said that Taggart had been overlooked because Vidmar - who personally spoke to the Jets marksman - knew what he could do and wanted to see the capabilities of some other strikers.

Mulvey questioned whether it was better for the development of players to be representing Australia in Oman rather than be playing for their A-League clubs.

"Is this smart for our A-League competition? We really need to start taking care of our A-League," he said.

News_Rich_Media: Brisbane Roar coach Mike Mulvey conceded his side were simply outplayed in the 2-0 defeat to Newcastle Jets on Friday night.

"We talk it up as being the best competition in Asia along with the J-League (Japan) and the K-League (South Korea), and we want to have that credibility, yet this just hurts that.

"The sooner we get that sorted out, the better. It might be you have a break or you don't select players who are regularly playing in the A-League."

Mulvey also had his Roar hat on.

"We've got two players from our club who have played a major part in our season, and now we're going to be without them," he said.

Brown will line up for his ninth straight match for the A-League leaders on Thursday against Sydney FC at Allianz Stadium in the continuing absence of veteran left back Shane Stefanutto (hamstring), while Donachie has started in six of Brisbane's 11 matches this season.

"They'll miss three A-League games, then there's the travel, they'll miss training … it's very difficult," Mulvey said.

"I've got to protect the club's interests and the club's interests are certainly not being served in this instance."