Football: Wellington Phoenix fall to Sydney FC in A-League Women

Rachel Lowe scored the lone goal in Sydney FC's win over the Wellington Phoenix. Photo / Photosport

The Wellington Phoenix can expect to work on clearing the ball from a corner in the week ahead.

In 1-0 A-League Women’s loss against Sydney FC in Auckland on Sunday, a 47th-minute goalmouth scramble created after the Phoenix failed to convincingly see off a corner was the only moment to separate the sides; the boot of Sydney substitute Rachel Lowe guiding the ball into the back of the net for what would be the lone goal of the game.

The Phoenix held their own against the second-placed Sydney side for the majority of the match, While Sydney enjoyed the bulk of possession, the Phoenix defensive unit held strong throughout, with Mackenzie Barry and Michaela Foster putting in impressive shifts, while goalkeeper Brianna Edwards continued to push her case for higher honours with some big saves under pressure.

She was given plenty of work to do, too. Sydney had 23 attempts on goal – six on target – and while the Phoenix looked threatening on attack, some lapses in the midfield limited their opportunities.

“It was a tough game,” captain Chloe Knott told Sky Sport after the match. “Sydney are a great team, they were always going to be a great team and it was always going to be a tough game. It’s disappointing to concede on a corner but we pushed hard for 90 minutes and we’ll just keep building from here. We’ve got to work on our corners defensively.”

While they showed plenty of endeavour, the Phoenix were unable to improve their stocks at the bottom of the table, still with just one win and two draws from 12 matches.

In their first trans-Tasman away trip in the A-League Women competition, once Sydney scored their opener it looked at times like they might go on with the job as Australian international Cortnee Vine posed a constant threat and they were finding plenty of space in the middle third to work in.

The best of the Phoenix’s opportunities came in the first half, and they did find the back of the net late in the opening period from a lovely Michaela Robertson finish, but the goal was ruled out for a player being offside in the buildup. Robertson was a threat throughout when the ball did find her up front, though her finishing left plenty to be desired as she failed to test the Sydney goalkeeper as much as she probably would have liked with her efforts.

Although they were unable to come away with anything to show for their efforts, Knott said the side had some positive elements to take away from the fixture.

“We’re just trusting the process and trying to build on every week on every performance; little tweaks here and there, building connections on the field. Results will come. We’re at the tail end of the season but we’re pushing for points in every single game.”

Wellington Phoenix 0

Sydney FC 1 (Rachel Lowe)

HT: 0-0