A dramatic injury-time winner from Sasho Petrovski broke the hearts of the Wellington Phoenix faithful at Westpac Stadium on October 21, as the 10,562-strong crowd saw their charges snatch defeat from the jaws of a draw in going down 2-1 to Hyundai A-League leaders Central Coast Mariners in a rip-roaring ninth round encounter.
How there were only three goals in this game defies logic, because it was chock-full of end-to-end action as both teams went all-out for the three points both desperately needed to put a stop to recent form slumps.
The Mariners made the brighter start, with Jeremy Christie forced to head the ball off his own goal-line in the fourth minute after Wellington?s defence had allowed a long throw-in from Andrew Clark to bounce in their goalmouth.
Twelve minutes later, the visitors opened the scoring. Steven O?Dor was caught on possession by Petrovski, who threaded a ball across to Dean Heffernan. From fifteen yards, the fullback sent a thumping drive arrowing under the diving figure of Glen Moss and into the back of the net.
Stunned, Wellington nearly found themselves two goals down just two minutes later. But for O'Dor's vital tackle on the charging figure of Tom Pondeljak, that would have been the likely outcome.
Instead, the home team fought back, Shane Smeltz pouncing on a wayward Clark pass in the twentieth minute to find himself with just Tony Vidmar standing in his path. The veteran defender jockeyed the striker superbly, forcing Smeltz into a cul de sac in which a couple more Mariners defenders were lying in wait to dispossess Wellington's leading marksman.
Smeltz had the last laugh just four minutes later, however, for Wellington drew level in stunning fashion at this point. There appeared to be little threat to the Mariners when Daniel played the ball inside to Ahmad Elrich some twenty-five yards out from goal with his back to the target, but the speedster soon changed that thinking.
A svelte swivel preceded a swashbuckling strike which fair sizzled into the top right-hand corner of Danny Vukovics goal, the ?keeper clutching at air in vain as the home team?s marquee signing pitched his tent in spectacular fashion on his home debut.
That goal was the catalyst for the roller-coaster ride which ensued, as both teams went for broke to produce a very open, lively affair, which was great fare for the paying punter to enjoy, but not so for the coaching staff of both teams, who would have been mortified at some of the heart-in-mouth defensive lapses which unfolded as the match went on.
The first of these materialised in the 27th minute. Central Coast?s rearguard?s concentration lapsed as they casually knocked the ball around, gifting Tim Brown possession. The Wellington midfielder instantly sent Smeltz bearing down on goal, and it was only a timely tackle by Nigel Boogaard which ensured parity on this occasion.
Seconds later, Elrich and Smeltz played a one-two on the edge of the Mariners? penalty area which culminated in the speedster whipping in a low cross. The visitors scrambled the danger out for a corner, from which Elrich fired a cross to the far post. Daniel slid in to meet it, only for Vukovic to fling himself to his right and smother the effort.
Back came the visitors, with a Pondeljak cross arcing inches too far in front of the incoming figure of Matt Simon in the 33rd minute, before Wellington resumed their pursuit of a second goal before the interval.
The closest they came to realising their target was a 38th minute raid, sparked by Christie. Elrich overlapped the fullback and was rewarded with a precise pass into his stride, allowing him to fire in a cross. This was cleared to the edge of the penalty area, where Vince Lia was lurking with intent, but his shot was deflected to safety.
Straight from the start of the second half, the Mariners stormed downfield and came within the width of a post from regaining the lead. Simon got the better of O?Dor before turning and shooting from the edge of the penalty area. Moss got his fingertips to the effort, which proved suffice to divert it onto the inside of the far post, off which it bounced back into play and to safety.
The offside flag harshly denied Lia in the 52nd minute, as Wellington looked to break the deadlock, but two minutes later, some lovely skill from Daniel on the left culminated in a low cross intended for Smeltz. Vidmar had other ideas, and dived in to clear the danger.
Back came the Mariners, Heffernan and Pondeljak combining to send Greg Owens spearing through, only for O'Dor to shut the door on his opponent's goalscoring prospects. But Owens gained revenge of a sort on the hour mark, standing up O?Dor before thrashing a shot into the side-netting.
Wellington's defence was missing, presumed having a good time in the 64th minute, much to the Mariners' delight. Substitute Adam Kwasnik sent Petrovski scampering through, only for the striker to be denied by the legs of Moss - a vital save.
Seconds later, Kwasnik fired in a cross from the left which had the head of the incoming figure of Simon as its intended target. But the striker never got near the ball, as Karl Dodd bundled him down from behind in the penalty area.
Referee Peter Green instantly pointed to the penalty spot, giving Petrovski the perfect opportunity to restore the visitors' lead. But the Mariners? marksman fired wide from the spot, meaning the scoreline remained 1-1.
Within minutes, the Mariners charged once more. Petrovski's cross was punched out by Moss to Owens, who promptly let fly from twelve yards. Moss produced a fine reaction save to keep his side on level terms.
The visitors were piling on the pressure now, and Wellington weren't aiding their own cause by some kamikaze-like defensive work. Somehow they were holding on, Moss a key factor in that situation. In the 74th minute, he saved superbly at the feet of Pondeljak after Owens had slipped his midfield colleague in on goal with the ?keeper to beat.
Inspired by their goalkeeper's exploits to keep them in the game, Wellington reminded the Mariners in the last fifteen minutes that they weren?t the only team in search of three points. Daniel pulled a shot across the face of goal, before Tony Lochhead - his overlapping runs were a feature of the home team?s play - saw his twenty-yard shot on the turn deflected to safety twelve minutes from time.
Five minutes later, Elrich saw his free-kick volleyed clear by Boogaard, who, four minutes from time, felled Smeltz in the penalty area as the striker got on the end of Christie's right-wing cross. Referee Green turned a blind eye and a deaf ear to the home team?s pleadings, as the grandstand finale came to a head.
After Kwasnik had volleyed a yard wide on receipt of a Heffernan throw-in, Wellington's Keystone Cops defensive techniques were exposed at the most inopportune of moments.
Two minutes into stoppage time, Simon fired the ball across for Petrovski, who found himself confronted by both O'Dor and Christie as he set sail for goal. He wriggled between the defenders, only to lose possession to Christie, who inexplicably gifted the ball back to the striker on the edge of the penalty area as he badly under-hit his pass back towards Moss.
The 'keeper was given no chance whatsoever to pull the Phoenix out of the fire this time, Petrovski waltzing round him before walking the ball into a gaping net to wrap up a vital 2-1 win for the Mariners, in the process silencing the Wellington faithful who stood open-mouthed in disbelief at the defensive horror show to which they had borne witness in the dying seconds of a match which looked destined to be drawn.
Instead, it was a win for the visitors, which, on the balance of play, they deserved - Moss was a far busier goalkeeper than Vukovic, and kept his side in the contest with a string of saves which he wouldn?t have been called upon to make had the defenders in front of him been up to the task to which they had been assigned.
It is that issue which Wellington's coach, and former All Whites defender Ricki Herbert, most needs to focus on to arrest the three-loss slump currently being experienced by the A-League's newest side.
Not far behind is the increasing frequency with which Phoenix players are committing yellow card offences - five players were booked in this match alone. But it is the rearguard action which requires urgent attention.
While no-one can fault Wellington for their entertainment value - they are the league's second-highest scoring team - they also boast the worst defensive record by far of all eight teams in the competition, and it's somewhat telling that they are the only team in the league yet to keep a clean sheet this season.
That situation needs resolving sooner rather than later, if the league's newcomers are to complete a fairytale season by, at the first time of asking, reaching the season-ending play-offs series which the Central Coast Mariners, even at this stage of the campaign, appear destined for.