The Newcastle Jets continued to confound critics with their strong form, scoring a 2-1 win against the Wellington Phoenix to reclaim second spot on the A-League ladder.
In a sometimes scrappy game in front of 11,947 sun-drenched fans, Newcastle turned a 2-0 halftime advantage into a comfortable win despite the absence of key players Stuart Musialik and in-form striker Mark Bridge, both on Olyroo duty.
Socceroo and marquee signing Ahmad Elrich made his first appearance for Wellington, starting on the bench and then playing the entire second half.
But the visitors couldn't overcome the loss of five first-team regulars absent on New Zealand duty for an eventually postponed World Cup qualifier against Fiji.
The Phoenix were never really in the game, they lacked cohesion, failed to create opportunities and were flattered by a Steven Old goal as the full-time whistle sounded.
The Jets opened the scoring after 17 minutes when little used mid-fielder Noel Spencer broke open the Wellington defence with a lovely one touch pass to release Joel Griffiths whose square ball found debutant James Holland who blasted home from inside the box.
Although Elrich's first appearance in Phoenix colours may have attracted more attention, it was his younger brother Tarek who laid on a second goal for Newcastle in the 40th minute with a nice pass to Joel Griffiths who finished from close range.
Tough Newcastle defender Steve Laybutt may have been lucky to stay on the field in the 53rd minute after he brought down former Jet Vaughan Coveny when it appeared as though Laybutt was the last defender.
Ahmad Elrich showed some class when he curved the resulting 20-metre free kick within a whisker of pulling a goal back for the visitors.
The home side continued to serve it up to the Phoenix, dominating possession for much of the second half and creating numerous opportunities, yet failing to capitalise.
Wellington's effort was summed up by the last minute goal mouth scramble that finally produced a goal.
