Player/coach Paul Ifill does a self-cross examination on a missed opportunity after coming in as a substitute at Park Island, Napier, yesterday. Photo / Warren Buckland
The fate of their O-League future out of their hands, Hawke's Bay United ended their campaign on a disappointing note in Napier yesterday.
The hosts lost 3-1 in the ASB Premiership football semifinal at Park Island, Napier, to Team Wellington, who not only avenged their 2-0 loss a fortnight ago at David Farrington Park but also kept alive their hopes of retaining their O-League status provided they beat defending champions Auckland City in the grand final on Thursday.
The tempestuous end to their O-League debut in the final in Suva, Fiji, last year means no love will be lost between the Matt Calcott-coached Wellingtonians and counterpart Ramon Tribulietx's City slickers so that should work in Bay's favour.
Ironically Bay United were in a similar position last summer, having beaten Team Wellington in the semifinals but needing a historic grand final victory to displace premiership runners-up Wellington but they lost.
Yesterday at Bluewater Stadium the must-win playoff was predictably different with the Bill Robertson-captained visitors showing a lot more discipline than they did in their loss against the Bay in the capital.
Conspicuous in his absence was co-captain Cole Peverley, out with an injury but memorable for collecting two yellow cards in the previous clash.
Yesterday the Wellingtonians showed more urgency, striking in the first minute from a free-kick header but referee John Rowbury deemed it offside on the instruction of his assistant, who had his flag raised. However, the dozing hosts didn't take heed.
Four minutes later, it was beyond any doubt when winger Luis Corrales blitzed leftback Sean Liddicoat, who had earlier had an air shot, to surge into the box and put the ball between the legs of goalkeeper Joshua Hill for a 1-0 lead.
But the hosts equalised, 1-1, in the 10th minute from leftback Kohei Matsumoto who drilled a quick ball past goal Scott Basalaj on the left flank following a free kick after a foul on Cory Chettleburgh.
Two minutes later Bay striker Sam Mason-Smith had a sitter but hit it to Basalaj, who pushed it away with his left hand only for Tom Biss to drill it back to the goalkeeper.
In the 37th minute, Team Wellington went up 2-1 from a penalty-kick goal to striker Tom Jackson after rightback Martin Ramos Canales fouled Andy Bevin in the 18m box although, in fairness, the blame lay 70m away when Mason-Smith had possession with the Bay on attack but coughed up the ball as he opted to dribble when a simple pass would have been sufficient.
Rowbury, who appeared reluctant to flash yellow cards, lost patience in the 52nd minute when ex-Bay United midfielder Mario Alberto Barcia deservedly collected the first yellow card of the game after howling like someone had extracted his toenail in a tackle.
However, the complexion of the game changed in the 78th minute when Wellington sucked the blood out of Bay United with a sucker-punch 3-1 lead.
A retreating Bay United captain, Finlay Milne, had committed the cardinal defensive sin of letting a speculator long ball bounce 30m in front of his goalmouth only to watch Wellington substitute midfielder Magno Vieira zip past him to flick the ball over advancing Bay keeper Hill and into the empty net to deathly silence.
In the 83rd minute, referee Rowbury retired injured to the sideline after a collision as 4th official Antony Riley took over.
However, the Bay's substitutions also seemed equally peculiar at times. Angell's decision to take off Birhanu Taye in the second half was debatable and injecting schoolboy Ross Willox at playoff level was interesting, to say the least.
Bench player Fabien Kurimati, who had started, took almost 30 minutes to get into the game and needed to be substituted.
Perhaps the resounding statement was evident in the players' balcony of the grandstand where solid midfielder Zane Sole was reduced to a spectator with former striker Hamish Watson, who last month signed a deal with Wellington Phoenix in the A-League.
Using Sole on three yellow cards in a dead rubber against Waitakere United the previous Sunday here came back to haunt the hosts.
Calcott said they were determined after what happened in their previous clash at Miramar about what to do when the momentum swung a few times in yesterday's game.
"It was just being disciplined because it was our Achilles heel last time so I'm pleased with the work they've put in."
Calcott said he didn't want to sound disrespectful to any other teams but felt they were the closest anyone got to beating Auckland in the past four years.
"I don't think there'll be that sense of fear we had many, many years ago to play Auckland. I think it's now just a sense of trying to just get it across the line because, to be honest, too many times we've been beaten even before we've got on to the park against them," he said, delighted for the club, board, volunteers and fans for the fourth grand final in five years - three premiership and one Champions League with three different teams, including "one very young one".
Calcott was hoping to welcome back Peverley and suspended striker Ben Harris to the grand final.
"But it's really about focusing on these boys who were way from home and flew in at 9.30 this morning, and they've been waiting around but there's been a sense of calm around the boys today," he said.