Football: Brockie caps Phoenix career in emphatic way

Manny Muscat, left, of the Phoenix is congratulted on his goal by teammates Jeremy Brockie and Michael McGlinchey. Photo / Getty Images

Phoenix 3 Roar 0

Eight days, nine points and a storybook ending for Jeremy Brockie.

The New Year period was hectic for the Wellington Phoenix but they have come through in perfect fashion despite being without Nathan Burns (international duty) and Roy Krishna (hamstring) for two of the three games they had to play during the holiday season.

Wellington booked their third win in just over a week as they hammered the Brisbane Roar 3-0 at Westpac Stadium last night, which followed on from victories over Western Sydney and Adelaide.

With a break now upon them due to the Asian Cup, the Phoenix knew they had to push through the pain against the Roar and they did it comfortably as they moved to second place on the A-League ladder at the halfway point of the season.

Then there was Brockie. The enigmatic striker, who has struggled to fit in to Ernie Merrick's on-field plans, signed off on his two-and-a-half years at the Phoenix with a second-half double to help secure the points.

The 27-year-old will soon link with SuperSport United in South Africa but his penalty shortly after halftime and a 67th-minute thunderbolt showed what he could do when he was at his best.

Dutchman Roly Bonevacia had spent the past week practicing spot kicks but when Brockie was brought down by Brisbane goalkeeper Jamie Young there was no doubt around who was going to take it.

"The ideal scenario would have been to get three points first and to nick one in the back of the net to top it off," Brockie said.

"And, luckily, Roly gave the penalty to me and what a way to finish my career at the Phoenix."

With a spot in the top four now a realistic prospect this season, the Phoenix can push towards a home playoff game but Merrick wouldn't speculate on how far his team could go.

"It's not just the results, it's the way we play," he said. "We are playing good football."

That's a fair assessment too as the Phoenix thoroughly outplayed Brisbane and the visitors rarely threatened to get in the game after Manny Muscat put Wellington ahead 1-0 in the fourth minute.

Muscat has only scored three goals in 155 A-League appearances but the left back took his chance when it fell to him.

Brockie's double then iced the result.

"Wellington played a good game but we made it very easy from the beginning," Brisbane coach Frans Thijssen said. "Wellington deserved to win, they were the better team."

Merrick said his men were in need of the rest and they won't take the field again until February 2 when they meet the Roar in Brisbane.

Brockie, who finished with 23 goals in 58 games for Wellington, will be immersed in the South African game by then but he said he would keep up with the Phoenix's fortunes as they pushed towards the post-season. "I'm just a Phoenix fan now," he said.

Wellington Phoenix 3 (Manny Muscat 4, Jeremy Brockie 51 pen, 67) Brisbane Roar 0 halftime: 1-0