Phoenix fans revel in revenge

It’s a beautiful time to be a Wellington Phoenix fan.

The team took a large step towards a finals appearance with a 2-0 victory over Western United on Friday night, while the Yellow Fever faithful enjoyed this revenge win over former coach Mark Rudan.

The home side had to work extremely hard for the result, only sealed by David Ball’s cool chipped finish in the 90th minute.

Before that they had been hanging on to a 1-0 lead for more than an hour, after Liberato Cacace, who was honoured as the joint winner of the A-League player of the month for January, had found the far corner of Filip Kurto’s net.

It wouldn’t have been such an ordeal if the Phoenix had taken another of their numerous first-half chances, but the second half turned a bit ugly, mainly due to the horizontal rain and blustery wind.

But Ball’s goal — set up by a long Stefan Marinovic clearance — was just reward for their dominance, and gives them a nine-point buffer from seventh-placed Western United.

It also continues a remarkable streak in the capital, where they haven’t tasted defeat since round three at the end of October.

The Phoenix entered the arena in a new one-off charity strip to mark the club’s mental health round, with the purple shirt and green shorts mirroring the colours of the New Zealand Mental Health Foundation.

The home side had downplayed all talk of rivalry and revenge with Rudan’s return to Wellington, but they looked fired up from the start, and the first 20 minutes was their best period of the season.

It was an absolute blitz, with the tone set by Ulises Davila, who struck the inside of the post in the first minute. Shots rained down on Kurto, with the Polish keeper evoking memories of his spectacular form in the same stadium last season.

● Phoenix 2 (L Cacace 29, D Ball 90) Western United 0.