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18Apr21
Victory For The Travellers In "Distance Derby"
by Jeremy Ruane
Wellington Phoenix commenced their challenging programme of covering 4000 kilometres in a week in order to play three A-League games in fine style on April 18, overcoming Perth Glory 3-1 at HBF Park in the latest "Distance Derby" in front of 9229 fans.
With their play-off prospects on the line, a week in which Wellington plays in Perth, Hobart and Wollongong would be a tough ask for many a native Australian side, but when one considers the Kiwi team has effectively been living out of their suitcases simply to compete in the A-League this season, it's a particularly big ask.
But they embarked on their task with gusto out west, a match which enjoyed a frenetic opening stanza and left one wondering how the scoreline was still 0-0 come the half-time whistle.
Perth were into their stride from the outset, Chris Ikonomidis - back after a length injury absence - eager to make up for lost time by beating two before picking out Carlo Armiento on the far post in the fifth minute.
He steered his volley past the upright, while a vital headed clearance by Tim Payne two minutes later prevented Kosuke Ota's cross from reaching Ikonomidis, after Andy Keogh had brought the overlapping fullback into play with a precise pass.
Wellington responded with a ninth minute counter-attack. Ben Waine and David Ball worked a one-two on the left which culminated in the youngster delivering a delicious cross to the far post for Louis Fenton.
The fullback worked a slick one-two with Clayton Lewis before steering a low cross into the stride of Ulises Davila, whose deft and brilliantly improvised chip with the outside of his left foot from a near impossible position crept just past the far post - it deserved better fate.
After Lewis stung the gloves of former Wellington goalkeeper Liam Reddy with a long-range effort, Perth went desperately close to opening the scoring in the fourteenth minute.
Keogh and Bruno Fornaroli combined with Neil Kilkenny, who slipped a pass into the stride of Armiento. His drive was parried by Oliver Sail, inviting Armiento to attempt to reach the rebound.
Payne and Fenton were both drawn like magnets to the loose ball also, with the ball ricocheting off the fullback's hand after the Perth player had gone down after being tackled by Payne in the area. Referee Daniel Elder ruled no penalty, a decision which was verified by the Video Assistant Referee … eventually!
Lewis released Ball down the left in the nineteenth minute, only for the striker to see his shot blocked by the man-mountain who is Darryl Lachman - no prizes for guessing where this lad spends most of his time when not on a football pitch! He's a very solid unit, off whom strikers tend to bounce should they collide with him!
Back came Perth, Jason Geria and Armiento combining to open up Wellington's defence for the benefit of Fornaroli, only for Sail to produce a fine blocking save with his legs in the 23rd minute.
Wellington responded via the promptings of Cameron Devlin, whose pass to Waine was turned into the stride of Ball. His cross had Jaushua Sotirio's eyes lighting up on the far post, only for Reddy to intervene with a timely gather and spark a counter-attack in which Ikonomidis had his sights set on goal until he was well closed down by Payne
After Lewis, Ball and Waine had combined to set up Davila - he shot straight at Reddy, Ikonomidis tried an audacious effort from distance which the back-pedalling figure of Sail grabbed beneath his crossbar.
Shots from Fornaroli and Keogh soon followed, both of which were blocked by a Wellington defence in which Steven Taylor's presence was
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pivotal, while Ikonomidis' bid to conclude his first half of football for some time with a goal only narrowly failed to materialise in stoppage time, his thumping twenty yarder careering past the post by an ever-narrowing margin.
The visitors began the second spell brightly, Devlin thrashing a fifteen-yarder against the base of the post in the 51st minute after Ball had pounced on a Lachman error to set up the combative midfielder, who swooped on another defensive blunder four minutes later, Davila this time the beneficiary. Reddy smothered his low shot at the near post.
A Wellington goal wasn't far away, however, and it came from their very next attack. Davila sent Sotirio scooting through from half-way, and while Reddy raced out of goal and executed a well-timed intervention to thwart his progress, the 'keeper only succeeded in diverting the ball to Waine, who didn't hesitate in unleashing a forty-yarder which sailed into the unguarded net - 1-0 Wellington.
The visitors were still celebrating when Perth levelled the scores two minutes later. Fornaroli had gone close minutes earlier from an Ota corner, and this time he was fouled on the edge of the area, only for referee Elder to ignore his free-kick claims.
And with justification, for half-time substitute Joel Chianese had pounced on the loose ball, and after deftly side-stepping two challenges, thundered an eighteen yard missile into the roof of Sail's net - 1-1, and how!
There was a sense that more goals in this game were inevitable, and Waine came desperately close to netting his second of the game in the 61st minute, after Devlin had released Fenton down the right, allowing the fullback to drive in a cross for the young striker.
The retreating figure of Lachman intervened, however, heading over his own crossbar in his desperation to prevent Wellington from regaining the lead, something they did in the 66th minute, but only after Chianese had spurned a gilt-edged chance to give Perth the advantage after being played in by Keogh.
Wellington's goal had the "Made in Mexico" stamp plastered all over it. Davila weaved his way through several challenges before letting fly, only to see Reddy parry his shot to seeming safety. But the 'keeper hadn't reckoned on Fenton being up in support, and the fullback gleefully steered the ball twixt goalie and post from six yards to score Wellington's 500th goal in A-League football.
Perth piled on the pressure in search of a second equaliser, Keogh's rising drive over the top - an opportunity engineered by substitute Diego Castro - supplemented by a super move featuring Kilkenny, Lachman and Geria, whose cross to the far post was headed past the upright by Chianese.
Wellington drove a knife through the heart of Perth's comeback hopes fifteen minutes from time, in doing so clinching victory in fine style. Davila's driving run was central to the move, and his pass sent Sotirio surging through the offside trap. Reddy stood not a prayer as the striker slammed the ball into the roof of the net - 3-1.
Davila was only denied a deserved goal five minutes later by Sotirio's handling of the ball, while Perth's bid to halve the deficit, either side of this, saw Callum Timmins head a Kilkenny cross past the post, while Chianese was thwarted by a fine blocking save by Sail four minutes from time. But Wellington had done enough to win the first game of their Australian tiki tour - next stop Hobart.
Perth: Reddy; Geria (booked, 77), Lachman, Warland, Ota; Ikonomidis (Chianese, 46), Kilkenny, Malik (Timmins, 59), Armiento (Castro, 59); Keogh (Bramwell, 73), Fornaroli
Wellington: Sail; Fenton, Payne (booked, 59), Taylor, Sutton; Devlin, Davila (Rufer, 90), Lewis (booked, 82); Sotirio (Laws, 90), Waine (McGarry, 88), Ball
Referee: Daniel Elder
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