With three rounds of games left to play in the regular season of the Australian A-League, two sides fighting for finals places will square off on Sunday, as Wellington Phoenix entertain Brisbane Roar.
Following three straight defeats, the hosts sit in fifth spot and only lead the chasing pack by two points, while their visitors have quickly climbed off the foot of the division and to within three points of the top three.
Match preview
Following a mixed start to the A-League season, Wellington Phoenix looked to have set themselves up for a relatively comfortable top-six finish in the regular season with a strong run between mid-February and mid-March, putting 10 points on the board in a four-game span to take their tally to 30 from 21 outings courtesy of triumphs over Western United, Newcastle Jets and Sydney FC.
After beating the latter two back to back, Ufuk Talay's side found themselves in a strong position, but they have since hit a tough run with their cushion over the chasing pack quickly cut by three consecutive league losses, firstly suffering a 5-1 thrashing away at Adelaide United, with Alex Rufer's penalty being nothing more than a consolation as Luka Jovanovic, Lachlan Barr, Hiroshi Ibusuki and Craig Goodwin all got on the scoresheet after a Scott Wootton own goal.
They would then host basement side Melbourne Victory and suffer a concerning 2-1 defeat, despite going ahead in the first half through Oskar Zawada, as Bruno Fornaroli drew their visitors level on the hour mark before Damien Da Silva netted the decisive goal 14 minutes from time.
On the back of those consecutive defeats, Talay's men then faced the unenviable test of a trip to league leaders Melbourne City last time out, and they were unable to return to winning ways, instead falling to a 4-1 loss as Jamie Maclaren and Marco Tilio netted braces for the hosts, despite Steven Ugarkovic levelling the scores soon after the interval.
While they remain fifth in the A-League and within the Finals Series places with three matches left to play of the regular season, Wellington Phoenix have quickly seen their cushion reduced, and now only leading seventh-placed Newcastle Jets and eighth-placed Perth Glory by one and two points respectively, they will know that they quickly need to correct their form in the final few games, starting this weekend, to ensure they remain in the top six.
Their visitors, meanwhile, are looking upwards in the finals fight as they look to continue their climb up the division and into the final six at the end of the regular campaign.
Brisbane Roar's finals hopes looked to be all but gone as they endured a dismal run between mid-January and mid-March, picking up just one win from a 10-match span, and after that culminated in consecutive defeats to Macarthur and Melbourne City, they sat on just 20 points from 20 games.
The Roar, still under the temporary charge of Nick Green following Warren Moon's February departure, then made a crucial return to winning ways at home to Western United last month, as Jay O'Shea hit the only goal of the game in the final 10 minutes.
They would then travel to take on Central Coast Mariners, and despite being on the wrong end of a 4-1 beating, Brisbane's improvement was not totally derailed, as they quickly bounced back last time out, handing Newcastle Jets a 3-0 defeat to put themselves into the top-six fight, with Henry Hore opening the scoring and O'Shea and Stefan Scepovic wrapping up the three points in the second half.
Although their climb is only down to two victories in the last three games, Green's side certainly appear to have renewed confidence, and now only trailing sixth-placed Sydney FC by three points, they do still have a slim chance of sneaking into the Finals spots if they manage to end the season on a high, starting with a second straight win on Sunday.
Team News
Wellington Phoenix come into Sunday's game without centre-back Joshua Laws, who was sent off in their defeat to Melbourne City, and in his absence, Nikko Boxall should come in to join Tim Payne in the middle of the back four.
Their line should again be led by Oskar Zawada, who has netted 13 goals in 22 league appearances so far this season, with David Ball and Kosta Barbarouses fighting to join him up top.
Bozhidar Kraev is another key man going forward, having notched up seven goals and contributed five assists from midfield in the A-League this term, while Steven Ugarkovic and Alex Rufer will again partner up in the engine room.
Brisbane Roar should come into the contest with an unchanged starting XI on the back of their dominant display last time out, with Jack Hingert, Tom Aldred, Scott Neville and Noah Smith again bound to line up as a back four in front of goalkeeper Jordan Holmes after their clean sheet.
Throughout the season, their attack has been heavily reliant on Jay O'Shea, and he will continue to play a key role having contributed eight goals in 21 appearances from an advanced midfield role, while Stefan Scepovic will keep his place at the top end of the pitch after also getting on the scoresheet on Saturday alongside winger Henry Hore.
Kai Trewin will again be tasked with shielding the defence and should be partnered by Taras Gomulka, who has started in each of their last eight games after arriving from Melbourne City in February.
Wellington Phoenix possible starting lineup:
Sail; Elliot, Payne, Boxall, Sutton; Yan, Rufer, Ugarkovic, Kraev; Barbarouses, Zawada
Brisbane Roar possible starting lineup:
Holmes; Hingert, Aldred, Neville, Smith; Gomulka, Trewin; Hore, O'Shea, Lofthouse; Scepovic
We say: Wellington Phoenix 1-2 Brisbane Roar
Wellington Phoenix have certainly been the stronger of the two sides throughout the campaign, but they will be low on confidence after three straight defeats, while the visitors have a degree of momentum following their recent improvement, and we back them to pull off a somewhat surprise result on their travels this weekend.
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Top tip
Sam Varley
