KEY POINTS:
As a dress rehearsal before stepping on to football's big stage, a 2-2 draw with YoungHeart Manawatu was a fair enough effort from Auckland City.
But the real winner was New Zealand Football Championship leader Waitakere United who, 24 hours before, lost 1-0 to Canterbury United.
A win for either City or Manawatu yesterday would have eroded much of Waitakere's advantage.
As it transpired by the end of round nine, Waitakere, losing for the first time this season, had seen their lead clipped by just a point, to four over Manawatu, while City remained seven points off the lead.
A late goal by captain Andy Barron snatched a dramatic 3-2 win for Team Wellington over Hawkes Bay United in Napier to give Mick Waitts' team their first win in three outings and ensure they stayed in the top four.
Canterbury's win - Stuart Kelly's 75th-minute strike separating them and visitors Waitakere - was their third of the season and got them to within three points of City.
Otago blew a chance to get themselves into play-off contention when held 0-0 by Waikato FC in Hamilton.
The match of the round at Kiwitea St lived up to its billing, with City caught between going all out against an always-lively Manawatu and keeping something in the tank for their next outing - game one of the Fifa Club World Cup against African champions Al Ahly in Japan on Sunday.
At 0-0 at halftime, the chances of the points being shared remained a fair bet. Few could have envisaged what was about to unfold.
Less then four minutes after the break, Benjamin Totori volleyed home when a chipped free kick was headed out - but only as far as the league's leading scorer, who gave Ross Nicholson no hope as he smashed home.
The reply was nine minutes in coming but one quickly became two as Paul Seaman and Liam Mulrooney cashed in on some hesitant Manawatu defensive play to give City a 2-1 lead on the hour.
Within two minutes it was back to all square when Totori again chased deep, was brought down by Greg Uhlmann as he broke into the penalty area, bounced up and calmly slotted from the spot - his 12th of the season, stretching his golden boot lead to seven.
The Solomon Island connection, led by Totori and with Maemae and Nelson Sale too showing out, ensured there would be little respite for the home side.
They handled whatever was thrown at them and, with a little luck, could have snatched the game but for a couple of debatable calls from referee Mike Hester.
In the first, with City clear and on attack, Hester called play back and restarted with a dropped ball. A minute later the home side had a strong call for a penalty when Chad Coombes was clearly pushed by Adam Cowan but there was no reaction from the match officials.
The last say, little surprise, was with Totori who raced into space but then shot just wide of the City goal.
It was a workmanlike effort from City and one they got through without any apparent problems, although All White James Pritchett took no part apart from the warm-up, which suggests he will be ready to play in Japan.
In Christchurch, the home side were denied by a fabulous Michael Utting save on the hour when he kept out a shot from Henry Faarodo but Utting could do little as Kelly struck the game-breaker.
At Park Island, goals in the ninth (penalty) and 17th minutes for Graham Little had Team Wellington cruising.
Sam Jenkins, after 70 minutes, and Leo Shin, eight minutes later, snatched two for the hosts, dismaying the visitors until Barron's late winner.
