Wellington Phoenix - 4
Newcastle Jets - 0
The Wellington Phoenix picked up a crucial three points last night to keep their playoff hopes alive but they paid a massive price, with Paul Ifill suffering what looked a serious knee injury.
Ifill fell awkwardly in the 10th minute when shooting under the attention of Newcastle's Tarek Elrich and
was stretchered off in obvious agony.
X-rays later cleared him of a fracture below the knee but the full extent of the injury was yet to be determined.
Wellington can ill afford to lose their best player. Ifill has scored seven goals this season, on top of the 13 he banged in last season. A lot of the Phoenix's game plan is built around the Barbadian's trickery down the flanks and sharpness in front of goal.
It came a week after Mark Paston broke his leg against Brisbane. The Phoenix have an able replacement in Danny Vukovic, and he was excellent last night, and there might now be hopes Marco Rojas can fill the Ifill role.
The 19-year-old was making his first start last night in a Wellington shirt and was the most influential player on the park. He made the first goal for Tim Brown, with some wizardry of his own when he skipped between two defenders, scored the second with a well-struck volley and sent in the corner for the third for Chris Greenacre.
It has been an extraordinary ride for a player who was signed by the Phoenix only after going to the club on a Yellow Fever scholarship.
He is a rare talent in New Zealand football and it can't be long before he might temporarily swap the black-and-yellow shirt for a white one.
A bit like Kosta Barbarouses, the former Phoenix striker now at Brisbane, he's quick, skilful and seemingly fearless - and he's only just beginning.
Wellington will hope their season is far from the end, too. Last night's match was a classic six-pointer. With the race for the playoffs hotting up, especially for the final two spots, the Phoenix couldn't afford to lose and let Newcastle skip away.
They led 3-0 at halftime, thanks largely to Rojas, but everyone chipped in. They played with intensity and purpose in easily their best half of the season.
Ben Sigmund did a terrific marking job on former Arsenal and Everton striker Francis Jeffers, who had not lost in a Jets shirt since his arrival six weeks ago.
Significantly, Newcastle had conceded only 12 goals in 18 games all season - and only two in the first half - but were made to look ordinary by a Wellington side clearly in the mood.
The Phoenix couldn't maintain their dominance in the second spell - they looked to shut down the game - meaning the match meandered to a conclusion.
Vukovic made a couple of smart saves and Labinot Haliti blasted over from close range but Wellington got the final say when Dylan Macallister rounded off a good move by Daniel and Brown in the 89th minute.
Brown scored his sixth goal of the season in his 75th start in a Phoenix jersey - the most of any Wellington player - and Greenacre's strike had an element of controversy.
Newcastle were adamant Elrich cleared the ball before it crossed the line. But the Phoenix were deserved winners.
The 4-0 scoreline is the second-biggest in the club's history. Their best, a 6-0 thumping of Gold Coast last season, ushered in a terrific run to the playoffs.
Wellington will hope it happens again. The main difference, however, is they will probably have to do it without Ifill.
