Wellington Phoenix give New Zealand football fans hope again

Sarpreet Singh beats the tackle of Alex Lopez of the Roar during one of the best performances he's had in a Phoenix shirt. Photo / File

Three wins in a row. It's a headline many wouldn't think they'd read let alone get to see.

It's a show of form most people didn't believe the Phoenix were capable of especially after last season's woes. The 2017/18 season had been the final straw that broke the camel's back, such was the case for this football fan.

Seeing the country's top flight footballers routinely beaten and play without hope was a depressing sight, week-in week-out. Barely managing to scrape past Central Coast Mariners to avoid the wooden spoon was the only appearance of a consolation from a campaign which showed a team tired and out of ideas.

There were calls for major change in the club from style of play to the removal of defensive stalwart Andrew Durante, whose age was becoming a bigger and bigger issue with every passing day.

It was the uninspired football that turned me away. While there were rare patches of good form or good performances, there seemed to be no clear culture or connection between the players and the club. Those of you who love the game, do so for its unique ability to allow complete freedom of expression within a player's or a team's play.

Just by the way a player travels through their opposition or a team moves as one to react against an offensive threat, it can tell any fan of football everything they need to know about what makes this club special.

However, this can work to a club's favour and also be their worst nightmare. When a team is out of ideas and lacks inspiration, there is no hiding that from the fans. Of what loyal fans the Phoenix still possess, the majority will know when something is wrong irrelevant of what comes from the mouths of players, coaches and club officials.

In the last four games for the Phoenix, (including the heartbreaking draw with leaders Perth Glory after a dodgy red card for the Nix) you can see the heart is there. You can see the team has some measure of inspiration and want to perform for their faithful following.

There are a number of reasons for this. Number one is the revitalisation of the midfield. Alex Rufer and Spanish import Mandi have worked incredibly well in the centre of the park.

Concerns were raised at the time of Mandi's first inclusion into the starting 11 around his fitness and his ability to keep up with the pace of the game. Suffice to say, he has silenced any doubters as he and Rufer seem to be working well in tandem.

However, you can't talk about the Phoenix midfield without mentioning the Wellington wunderkind, Sarpreet Singh. Against the Brisbane Roar, the viewers saw just how valuable this 19-year-old is to the Phoenix set-up.

Despite being one of the smaller players on the park, Singh bossed the central and final thirds like his name had been printed on the grass. Playing pivotal roles in two goals and scoring an ingenious one himself towards the end, made a statement to the rest of the league and to the New Zealand football community that this is your next star.

Reminiscent of his predecessor, Marco Rojas, Singh uses his pace, ball skills and energy to beat players with ease. It's this spark of enthusiasm and creativity which has ignited the Nix's flame to become real contenders.

In addition to Singh's magic, the work of a tight back three has firmed up the Phoenix defence and our newest New Zealand citizen in Roy Krishna has confirmed their attacking threat. With a passionate coach in Mark Rudan, the team looks like it's going in the right direction.

By the time this goes to print, readers will know whether the Phoenix have made it four from four against a strong Melbourne Victory side. But should they lose and their winning streak is left broken, Wellington have showed us there is life left in this team and they should not be counted out.

I have no thoughts of a grand final victory but at this stage, be assured that once again, the Phoenix have a fan in me.

The Nix play Melbourne Victory in Melbourne at 9.50pm (NZ time) tonight.