Phoenix keen to press on

The Wellington Phoenix will carry a simple formula for success into their must-win clash with Sydney FC today.

‘‘As silly as it sounds, keeping the opposition as far away from our goal as we possibly can,’’ cocoach Des Buckingham said on Friday when reflecting on what went well in his side’s previous two wins over Newcastle (5-0 at home) and Melbourne Victory (3-0 away).

Such a plan should work against most teams, but Sydney are the exception to the norm.

They’ve lost once in 25 games this season, scoring 52 goals and conceding just 11 along the way. The Phoenix really have to win to keep their slim playoff hopes alive, although a draw and a loss from sixth-placed Perth loss would still give them hope. The plan should be similar to the one from the past two wins, pressing Sydney high up the field, but Buckingham said the key would be to pick their moments to press.

‘‘I think it’s important we realise when to [press] and when not to, if we go and press them when we’re disorganised behind they’ve got good players in key positions that will open you up.

‘‘So it’s important both Chris and I and the team on the pitch recognise when we’re setup in behind we can go and put a press on, but when we’re not set up we’re disciplined to remain patient and then go and press when we want.’’

The Phoenix have spent three of their training sessions this week working almost solely on that shape and how to press.

One element of Friday’s training which caught the ear was Buckingham instructing his players to be wary of their actions when defending set pieces.

This round of the competition will feature video referees for the first time. The Phoenix experienced them in a friendly against Beijing BG earlier this year, getting the benefit of a video referee intervention to award them a penalty for an off-the-ball foul at a free kick.

Buckingham’s instructions were to watch out for holding players at corners and the like.

The same could probably have been said for set pieces at the attacking end, where making the

most of contact from defenders could help teams prosper.

For Phoenix captain Andrew Durante, the match would be about taking the game to Sydney.

‘‘If we play that attacking style of football and press them up high, I think a lot of teams have given them a hell of a lot of respect and maybe not pressed them as much.

‘‘They’re quality, they’ve shown it all year, so it’s going to be difficult, but we want to at home really go at them and win the ball up high like we did against Victory.’’

On the injury front, the Phoenix will be onto their fifth right back of the season as Ryan Lowry prepares to start.

Jacob Tratt has returned home for personal reasons, while Louis Fenton, Matthew Ridenton and Dylan Fox are all injured in what Buckingham described as the ‘‘curse of the Phoenix right back’’.

Aside from that, it should be the same XI which beat the Victory which takes the field tomorrow night.