The Phoenix celebrate Ava Pritchard's strike. Photo / photosport.nz
The Phoenix celebrate Ava Pritchard's strike. Photo / photosport.nz
Two long droughts were broken as the Wellington Phoenix enjoyed a delightful double-header at home on Sunday.
The Phoenix women kicked off the party by drubbing Canberra United 5-0 for their first win in Wellington, before Alex Rufer sparked even wilder celebrations as he ended a 10-year wait for his first A-League goal.
Rufer’s strike set up a 2-1 victory over Central Coast and extended to three a winning streak that lifted the Phoenix into the top four, completing an outstanding afternoon.
It was also, at least to begin, an unpredictable one. The Phoenix women had earned only one point and scored three goals in their first eight games of the campaign, having managed 13 from 14 matches in a maiden season spent entirely on the road.
While they had shown greater defensive solidity in recent rounds, there was little warning that such an attacking outburst was imminent, especially considering their disrupted preparation.
The Phoenix started three players who had featured as the Football Ferns suffered a 5-0 loss to the United States at Eden Park on Saturday, with Paige Satchell, Grace Wisnewski and Mackenzie Barry experiencing a whirlwind 24 hours.
This one-sided scoreline was much more to their liking. Standout teenager Milly Clegg opened the scoring in the 43rd minute and Betsy Hassett made it 2-0 before halftime. Ava Pritchard grabbed a third right after the break before Hassett completed a brace and a late own goal added further gloss.
Phoenix goalkeeper Brianna Edwards also saved a penalty midway through the second spell as the home side snapped their winless streak in spectacular fashion.
“I can’t even put it into words, it’s just the most amazing feeling,” skipper Chloe Knott told Sky Sport. “I’m so proud of the team. We were waiting for this one. All the weeks have been building up to it and finally everything fell into place.”
Knott said her side took inspiration from the exploits of their Ferns contingent, with Hassett also involved as the US ran out 4-0 winners in the first match at Sky Stadium.
“It’s been such an amazing week for them, I’m so proud of them. We talked a lot about them bringing the energy into camp, and they really did. They showed up for us today and it was just amazing all round.”
The amazement soon continued as Rufer finally found the net, tucking away Josh Laws’ header across goal to put the Phoenix in front. It was hardly one for the highlight reel but coming in his 107th game for the club - and coming after the midfielder spent much of last year on the sidelines with a knee injury - he and his teammates were exuberant.
Alex Rufer celebrates a long-awaited goal. Photo / Getty
“I’m extremely happy for him,” Kosta Barbarouses told Sky Sport. “He’s come back even stronger for his injury and he’s looked great for us. You could see from our reaction when he scored how happy we were.”
After grabbing the only goal in the previous two weeks, Polish striker Oskar Zawada doubled his side’s lead before the break, with only an injury-time consolation for Beni N’Kololo denying the hosts a third successive clean sheet.
Players and staff from both teams were involved in a scuffle after the fulltime whistle had sounded, with goalkeeper Oli Sail reacting furiously to a late challenge, but Barbarouses downplayed the incident.
“We just take the three points and move on - there’s no need for all the extras,” he said. “We needed dig deep and I think that was just a result of a bit of desperation at the end.”
Wellington Phoenix women 5 (Milly Clegg 43, Betsy Hassett 45, 83, Ava Pritchard 46, Emma Ilijoski own goal 88)
