A goal seventeen minutes from time by former Wellington Phoenix youngster Costa Barbarouses fired Brisbane Roar to a 1-0 victory over the New Zealand team and into a share of top spot on the Hyundai A-League ladder on 27 August, in front of 7,339 fans at Suncorp Stadium. The game began brightly, with Brisbane's impressive possession football seeing them gain the upper hand in the early exchanges. In just the third minute, Mark Paston was forced to turn an Henrique shot around the post after the fleet-footed Brazilian had worked a neat one-two with Barbarouses and burst into the penalty area. The visitors cleared the resulting corner, and stormed downfield, led by Paul Ifill. His initial effort was blocked, but he latched onto the rebound and uncorked a superbly angled and weighted pass into the path of Dylan MacAllister. Michael Theoklitos parried the striker's shot round his near post, then looked on with relief as MacAllister's ten-yard header, from Leo Bertos' resulting corner, flashed narrowly past his right-hand post in the fifth minute. Back came Brisbane, with Henrique forcing another save from Paston, this time with a twenty-yarder after working an opening with Matt McKay in the ninth minute, upon which the game entered a lengthy period of play in which defences dominated, no individual more so than the outstanding Andrew Durante, whose reading of the game saw the home team enjoy little reward for endeavour aplenty. Eleven minutes before half-time, attacking enterprise finally began to make some head-way, with Wellington forcing a corner on the right. Bertos' delivery picked out the head of MacAllister, whose goal-bound effort saw Chris Greenacre glance it further towards the back of the net before Theoklitos pulled off a splendid reflex save to divert the ball away, Mitch Nichols making certain the danger was averted by heading clear by the post. After Bertos had battered a thirty-five yard free-kick over the bar, and Vince Lia, Tim Brown and Ifill had combined to present MacAllister with a heading opportunity which he sent looping harmlessly over the crossbar, Brisbane spurned two glorious chances to go into the dressing rooms at least a goal to the good. Theoklitos threw the ball out to Nichols in the 42nd minute, and he motored over the half-way line before working a slick one-two with Barbarouses, whose deft back-heel opened up Wellington's defence and allowed Nichols to bear down on goal through the inside left channel, Paston the only obstacle between the Brisbane speedster and the opening goal. The All Whites goalkeeper stood his ground well, and saved superbly at Nichols' feet, repeating the dose two minutes later to deny Thomas Broich, after he dashed onto Henrique's through ball and looked to poke it home from the vicinity of the penalty spot.

Either side of the interval, Ifill had a couple of chances to break the deadlock and give the visitors the upper hand. Theoklitos smothered his twenty-five yarder - the last act of the first half - before looking on with relief as the striker's angled twenty yard snapshot grazed the top of Brisbane's crossbar ten minutes into the second spell. Ifill was then denied in the act of shooting by the desperate recovering challenge of Luke Devere, after he had spun past his opponent on receipt of a pass just outside the penalty area, while Theoklitos foiled him again soon after Barbarouses had gained sweet revenge against the club which gave his precocious talent precious few Hyundai A-League opportunities in which to shine. Ange Postecoglou, Brisbane's coach, has no such qualms, and was rewarded on this, his 45th birthday, when the Kiwi broke the deadlock seventeen minutes from time. Shane Stefanutto played the ball inside to Barbarouses, who worked a one-two with Matt McKay before coolly slotting the sphere past the advancing figure of Paston and just inside the far post. Before the goal, Barbarouses had gone close, in tandem with substitute Reinaldo - the pair were bisected by Henrique's pull-back from the by-line into the heart of Wellington's goalmouth. Ben Sigmund scrambled the ball to safety on this occasion, while another vital tackle from Durante denied Barbarouses nine minutes from time, as he slalomed his way through Wellington's rearguard on a super solo raid. Wellington substitute Mirjan Pavlovic made an eye-catching debut for the club, and twice came close to conjuring up an equaliser in the last ten minutes. A splendid solo raid was only thwarted by Theoklitos in the 83rd minute, with the 'keeper forced to tip his deflected drive over the bar. Three minutes later, he teamed up with Lia and Ifill to present Bertos with what proved to be Wellington's last chance - the banana-booted midfielder should have done far better when the ball came his way on the edge of the goal area. Brisbane looked to clinch the points with a second goal in the dying minutes, but Henrique and Reinaldo were both thwarted by the despairing efforts of Durante and Manny Muscat after the eye-catching Broich had led a counter-attack, while Paston battered away a Reinaldo drive in stoppage time to ensure his team's first defeat of the season would be by the odd goal in what was an at times tedious encounter. Brisbane:     Theoklitos; Devere, Susak, Smith, Stefanutto; Henrique, McKay (booked, 71), Paartalu, Nichols (Reinaldo, 63); Broich, Barbarouses (Murdocca, 88) Wellington:     Paston; Muscat, Sigmund, Durante (booked, 53), Lochhead; Ifill (booked, 11), Brown (booked, 45), Lia (booked, 35), Bertos; Greenacre (Hearfield, 80), MacAllister (Pavlovic, 66 (booked, 75)) Referee:     Chris Beath