KEY POINTS:
Ricki Herbert has no fear of Wellington Phoenix suffering stage fright should they take the early lead in their home game against A-League front-runners Central Coast Mariners tomorrow.
In all but one of eight games this season, the Phoenix have fallen behind and either finished there or spent
much the remaining time battling back to get a point or three.
"It would be a nice feeling to get in front and stay there," said Herbert. "From a confidence point of view it would be great. We have to learn there is nothing wrong with winning 1-0.
"We don't want to become one-dimensional. We have captured the imagination by being a good team to watch but you can't ever afford to go out with an 'attack at all costs' attitude."
With all his players bar inspirational Brazilian Felipe - still not 100 per cent recovered from a hamstring injury - available, Herbert had his toughest selection conundrum this week.
He has gone back to his more or less regular line-up with four of his five returning All Whites set to start. Only goalkeeper Mark Paston continues to bide his time.
By including former Socceroo Ahmad Elrich for his first start - probably alongside Shane Smeltz and Daniel - Herbert has shown his hand in opting for a three-man strike force, leaving Ross Aloisi, Tim Brown and Vince Lia to hold the midfield reins.
"It [team selection] was more difficult this time given the decent, broad spread of players to look at," said Herbert.
Visiting Central Coast Mariners' coach Lawrie McKinna will put a five-from-five winning record in New Zealand on the line when the Hyundai A-League leaders run on at Westpac Stadium.
McKinna has steered the Mariners to three wins in two seasons against the New Zealand Knights, after earlier scoring wins here with his former club Northern Spirit in the old NSL.
McKinna also takes confidence tomorrow from putting out the team who have inflicted the biggest loss - 3-0 - on the Wellington-based side this season.
He too can welcome players back from international duty, includingNigel Boogaard and Danny Vukovic. Tony Vidmar returns from suspension, while Bradley Porter misses the transtasman match through suspension.
The Mariners have the best defensive record in the league conceding just four goals. The Phoenix have leaked 14 - the worst - but only Adelaide United, with 13, have scored more than the Phoenix's 12.
While it is a tad early to suggest this is a game in the "must win" category, a loss would throw some fear into the Phoenix camp and leave them in a vulnerable position with the season approaching the halfway point.
On the field
Wellington Phoenix v Central Coast Mariners, Westpac Stadium, Wellington, 5pm tomorrow.
* Phoenix (likely): Glen Moss, Jeremy Christie, Steve O'Dor, Karl Dodd, Tony Lochhead, Ross Aloisi (c), Tim Brown, Vince Lia, Shane Smeltz, Ahmad Elrich, Daniel. Substitutes (from): Mark Paston, Richard Johnston, Steven Old, Royce Brownlie/Costa Barbarouses.
* Mariners (from): Matthew Trott, Matt Simon, Ian McAndrew, Andre Gumprecht, John Hutchinson, Dean Heffernan, Tom Pondeljak, Greg Owens, Tony Vidmar, Andrew Clark, Nigel Boogaard, Adam Kawsnik, Sasho Petrovski, Mile Jedinak, Danny Vukovic.
