Draw dampens Nix hopes
Wellington unable to breach league’s toughest defence in terrible conditions
The Wellington Phoenix missed the chance to move into the A-League’s top six after a frustrating 0-0 draw with Brisbane in awful conditions last night.
After a quiet first half, the Phoenix came home strong, but couldn’t get the goal that their finale probably deserved, despite a series of late chances.
But whatever happens over the rest of their campaign, the Phoenix surely won’t play in more difficult circumstances than they faced in the Queensland capital.
The waterlogged pitch must have only just passed inspection and detracted from the spectacle. It provoked memories of the ‘water battle’ of Frankfurt in the 1974 World Cup, when West Germany and Poland splashed around and dodged puddles.
Constant rain in Redcliffe had prompted doubts the game would go ahead, but Brisbane probably had no choice, with 10 games still to play in their regular season.
At times for the players, it was like running in snow while passing in a sand pit, though both teams did well in the circumstances, which improved marginally after halftime.
Steven Taylor and Tim Payne were rock solid at the back under constant pressure, while it was particularly tough for the midfielders.
David Ball performed his usual lung-busting role, while Ulises Davila was superb in the second half, carving open the Brisbane defence at will with his wonderful creativity, though the state of the field hampered Wellington’s possession-based game.
The Roar have the A-League’s stingiest defence and were always going to be hard to break down, but the Phoenix dominated the last half hour, only missing the final flourish.
Phoenix coach Ufuk Talay praised his side’s performance in challenging conditions.
“Tactically, we changed a few things at halftime; not too much, but I think the boys adapted to the conditions in the second half a lot better, and we created enough chances to win,” said Talay.
The result means the Phoenix remain eighth and Talay is confident his team can mount a serious bid for the playoffs.
“There’s three points difference with [fifth-placed] Macarthur and we’re on the same number of games, so there’s still enough games — it’s going right down to the wire this season in terms of the top six.”
There were few genuine chances in the first half. Louis Fenton flung over some crosses, while Davila was blocked by a teammate when the ball fell in the area. More than 30 minutes passed before the first shot on target — covered well by Oli Sail — partly because the corner zones of the pitch were the worst.
Tomer Hemed and Ben Waine barely saw the ball, while Brisbane had 12 unanswered shots in the last 30 minutes of the half, though most were ineffectual.
Their best chance was foiled by a timely lunge from Clayton Lewis, after the ball fell to Jack Hingert six yards out.
Fenton accrued a harsh yellow card after falling in the area and will miss the next match, along with Cameron Devlin, who was also booked.
After defending too deep in the first half, the Phoenix were more compact and played more football, with Davila somehow finding space and time to torment the home defence.
He helped carve out a series of half chances to Fenton, Ball and substitute Jaushua Sotirio, whose pace helped change the complexion of the match.
The Australian had the best opportunities, but couldn’t keep his feet in the crucial moments, twice falling in the area, while Reno Piscopo stung the palms of Roar keeper Jamie Young with a long-range drive.