The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website | home
21Nov21 | 27Nov21 | 03Dec21 | 10Dec21 | 19Dec21 | 01Jan22 | 21Jan22 | 06Feb22 | 09Feb22 | 12Feb22 | 16Feb22 | 19Feb22 | 09Mar22 | 12Mar22 | 18Mar22 | 26Mar22 | 30Mar22 | 02Apr22 | 05Apr22 | 09Apr22 | 13Apr22 | 17Apr22 | 24Apr22 | 29Apr22 | 05May22 | 09May22 | 14May22
09Feb22
Piscopo Strike Settles Tedious Tussle
by Jeremy Ruane
A Reno Piscopo strike sixteen minutes from time settled a rather tedious Isuzu Ute A-League tussle between Wellington Phoenix and Melbourne Victory at a spectator-less WIN Stadium on February 9, a match which, until the goal arrived, was well on course to be afforded one of those headlines rarely associated with the round ball game.
"And both lucky to get nil" was a fair reflection of a match which featured perspiration aplenty, but very little penetration and inspiration as Wellington recorded their third successive victory to close to within a point of the play-off places, having started the month rock bottom of the table.
These teams clashed in the semi-final of the FFA (now Australia) Cup last month, with Melbourne coming from behind to prevail on that occasion before going on to claim the trophy in last weekend's final, beating Central Coast Mariners 2-1.
Thus it was understandable that they should still be in a degree of celebration mode a few days later. Wellington, meanwhile, were playing their second of five games in fourteen days … all the elements for a match which rarely rose above the mundane, and in which very few genuine goalscoring opportunities materialised.
The visitors enjoyed the better of the early exchanges, during which referee Ben Abraham made it clear that he would be quite content to let play flow unless someone was really naughty, which David Ball certainly was when rugby-tackling Ben Folami from behind in the 57th minute!
Before that incident, a few others of note had occurred, Joshua Brillante the first to threaten with an eighth minute effort before Joshua Laws' intervention prevented Francesco Margiotta from getting on the end of a cross from the generally well-performed Jason Davidson.
The Italian thrashed a twenty yard free-kick narrowly over the bar on the quarter hour, while ten minutes later a sharp Melbourne raid down the left, featuring Chris Ikonomidis, culminated in Margiotta's close-range effort being remarkably thwarted by Oliver Sail, the goalkeeper somehow pawing the ball out from behind him as Melbourne came close to breaking the deadlock in the 25th minute.
Sixty seconds later, Wellington mounted their first attack of note, Ball combining his aerial prowess with fine close control before bursting into the penalty area and forcing goalkeeper Ivan Kelava and Leigh Broxham to team up in a successful bid to thwart the striker, who had forged a path into the six-yard box.
Right on half-time, the solidly performed Birkan Kirdar sent a twenty-five yarder over the top, the latest long-range effort fired in a contest which was far from a great spectacle - surely the second spell would offer an improvement in that regard.
|
It certainly saw both goalkeepers earning their keep, Sail in particular. But not before Kelava had kept out a twenty yard drive from Tim Payne, who had stormed up in support of Gael Sandoval's surging run through the middle of the park in the 48th minute.
Four minutes later, a slick Melbourne interchange on the left culminated in Folami running at the Wellington defence en route to the penalty area. New Wellington recruit Scott Wootton failed to put in a challenge - unlike Ball's radical effort five minutes later! - and the youngster came close to exploiting the lack of attention, blasting a rising drive past Sail's right-hand post.
Folami eventually got to test Sail, the 'keeper turning the winger's 61st minute effort round the post, before blocking a Brillante attempt four minutes later after he had worked a one-two with freshly introduced substitute, All White Marco Rojas, for whom a visit to the hairdresser for a short back and sides would be well in order before he next gets called upon to represent his country.
After Ball scuffed a shot past the post following fine approach work featuring Alex Rufer, Sam Sutton and Jaushua Sotirio, Rojas was presented with a gilt-edged chance to break the deadlock in the 69th minute.
Another rampaging run down the left by Davidson culminated in a sumptuous cross which found the hirsute newcomer in between defenders and approaching the penalty spot. Rojas duly controlled the ball before steering it goalwards, only for the fast-approaching figure of Sail to direct his effort round the post - a great save, one which the striker couldn't believe.
It was a miss which was to prove costly for Melbourne, for after Kelava had kept out a Sotirio drive, the deadlock was broken sixteen minutes from time. Davidson gifted possession to Ball, who bamboozled two defenders and lured Kelava out of goal before setting up Piscopo for an unerring ten yard finish which gave the Wellingtonians the lead.
Bagging an equaliser was Melbourne's prime objective for the remainder of the match, but they found Wellington too well organised and wise to their game. It wasn't until virtually the last kick of the match when they finally engineered an opening, but substitute Nick D'Agostino dragged his effort past the post, and with it went any hopes the visitors held of snaring a point.
Wellington: Sail; Payne, Wootton, Laws, Sutton; Sandoval (Old, 82), Rufer, (Pennington, 90), Lewis, Piscopo (booked, 90) (Waine, 90); Ball (booked, 57), Sotirio (Van Hattum, 90)
Melbourne: Kelava; Geria, Hamill, Broxham, Davidson; Brillante, Ikonomidis (Brooks, 78), Kirdar; Velupillay (Rojas, 62), Margiotta (D'Agostino, 72), Folami (Brimmer, 72)
Referee: Ben Abraham
|