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Troy Hearfield and Adrian Caceres celebrate - Source: Photosport -
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The Wellington Phoenix broke their run of six consecutive draws
in spectacular fashion with a 6-0 soccer A-League thrashing of Gold
Coast United in Wellington on Sunday.
Ahead 1-0 at halftime, four second-half goals in the space of 10
minutes helped carry the Phoenix to their biggest win in the
competition. Their previous best came last year with a 4-1 win over
Perth.
Sunday's result also equalled the biggest winning margin in the
A-League's history, Melbourne's 6-0 annihilation of Adelaide in the
2007 grand final.
Going into the match, the Wellington-based Phoenix had totalled
just nine goals over 10 games.
They were last on the table after North Queensland Fury upset Perth
Glory 2-1 last night and this result will lift them to either
seventh or eighth.
Three weeks ago, the Phoenix's lack of finishing saw them eke out a
scoreless draw with Gold Coast United at Skilled Park on the Gold
Coast. On Sunday, the team's composure in front of goal was
oustanding.
Brazilian midfielder Daniel, stretchered off with a knee injury in
last week's 1-1 draw with the Fury, picked up the Phoenix's first
goal after 28 minutes.
Fullback Tony Lochhead - playing his 50th match for the club -
slipped a perfectly weighted pass through to English striker Paul
Ifill, who found Daniel on the near post.
In what had developed into a scrappy game, the Phoenix worked hard
at shutting down United's attacking game, with former Phoenix and
current All Whites striker Shane Smeltz closely marked and largely
anonymous.
However, given the Phoenix's paucity of goals this season -
particularly in the second half of their matches - coach Ricki
Herbert must have been concerned at the break with his team only a
solitary goal up.
They had managed six corners and nine shots on goal to one of each
for Gold Coast, yet had managed to convert just once.
It took midfielder Tim Brown just three minutes of the second half
to double the Phoenix's lead, after a beautiful through ball from
Ifill found him with only goalkeeper Jess Vanstrattan to
beat.
Brown showed commendable composure in rounding the keeper and
calmly rolling the ball into the net to make it 2-0.
The goal signalled the beginning of a golden run for the Phoenix -
Daniel slotted home his second of the match five minutes later,
then set up English import Chris Greenacre barely 60 seconds after
that to make it 4-0.
Ifill, who showed superb vision and touch right from the first
whistle, was rewarded with a goal after 59 minutes as his strength
in front of goal and shot on the turn gave the Phoenix a 5-0 lead
with 20 minutes remaining.
Troy Hearfield inflicted the final indignity on a demoralised Gold
Coast with eight minutes remaining, as he latched onto a searching
Adrian Caceres ball into the area and made it 6-0.
A jubilant Ifill afterwards paid tribute to the team's patience
after the frustrating run of draws.
"I said before the game I thought somebody wouldd get a spanking,
but I wasn't sure if it was going to be this week," he told Radio
Sport.
"The way we've been playing it's just a case of hitting the back of
the net. We got those four goals in 10 minutes in the second half,
and we'd killed somebody off at last. It's been a long time
coming."
Ifill said the team had remained focused at the break.
"At halftime we said `we've got ourselves in a great position,
they're there for the taking. Let's go out and put it to them
in the first 15 and see what happens'."
Biggest winning margins in A-League soccer
history:
Six goals:
- Melbourne 6 Adelaide 0, Melbourne (grand final) 2006/07
- Wellington 6 Gold Coast 0, Wellington,
2008/09
Five goals:
- Melbourne 5 Sydney 0, Melbourne, 2005/06
- Brisbane 5 Newcastle 0, Newcastle 2005/06
- Brisbane 5 NZ Knights 0, Brisbane 2006/07
- Melbourne 5 Newcastle 0, Melbourne 2008/09
- Adelaide 6 Wellington 1, Adelaide 2008/09
