Davila shows impeccable timing for Nix
Ulises Davila’s timing remains impeccable for the Wellington Phoenix, with his son due to be born during their bye week.
A report this week suggested the midfield maestro could be out for more than a month when he returns to Mexico for the birth of his son in March, which would put a serious dent in the Phoenix’s plans for the run in to the A-league finals.
However, Phoenix coach Ufuk Talay allayed those fears yesterday, saying Davila was expected to be away for only a short time between their match against Newcastle Jets on March 22 and their next encounter against Adelaide United on April 5.
‘‘His wife has just gone back with all his family, but it [the due date] comes in the Fifa window, so he’ll probably go for four or five days for the birth of his first child.
‘‘So he’s not away for five or six weeks, or whatever was in the media.’’
The Phoenix’s bye falls between those two games – a Fifa international window where Davila’s All Whites team-mates are also expected to be away with the national team.
There was more good news yesterday with striker David Ball set to travel with the team to Brisbane for their match against the Roar today after missing last weekend’s win over Western Sydney with a hip injury.
‘‘He’ll travel with the squad. We’ll see how we use him against Brisbane. We probably won’t start him at this stage, we’ll see how the game goes,’’ Talay said.
‘‘It would be great to not have to use him, but we’ll see how the game goes.
‘‘The team well last week.’’
Alex Rufer remains out as he continues to work back to full fitness after suffering a knee injury on December 7.
Talay said their next game after Brisbane, at home to the Newcastle Jets, would still be too soon for him, and he would more likely be targeting a return after their bye, against Perth Glory on February 7.
They would look to get him game time with the reserve team during the week off.
The Phoenix haven’t really missed him, with Cameron Devlin stepping in and performing very did well in Rufer’s absence. The Phoenix’s first game against Brisbane resulted in their first win of the season when they ran out 2-1 victors at home on November 23.
That was the second game in their current unbeaten run of nine matches. If they win or draw today, they will set a new club record of 10 matches unbeaten.
Phoenix captain Steven Taylor said the Brisbane win was a key moment in their season so far.
‘‘At the start of the season, things weren’t coming off for us. As the Brisbane game was, everything fell our way on the day. The performances have gone from strength to strength from there and the boys have been outstanding since then.
‘‘I think the positive thing is we’ve played a bit poorly in some of the games, especially in the second half of games, and we’ve managed to get the win. That’s the sign of a good side.’’