Football: Burns fires Phoenix to vital victory

Albert Riera battles for possession with Marc Janko. Photo / Getty

Sydney FC 0
Wellington Phoenix 2

Striker Nathan Burns has sent a further reminder of why he is close to earning a recall to the Socceroos.

As the Wellington Phoenix and Sydney FC were locked in one of the most tedious A-League games in recent memory tonight, the competition's leading goal-scorer took it upon himself to give the contest a spark.

The striker found the back of the net twice in the space of eight minutes late in the game as the Phoenix banked a valuable 2-0 win across the Tasman and jumped to fourth on the ladder.

Burns hasn't played for the Australian national side since 2011 but is on the verge of a return for next month's Asian Cup after he was recently named in a 46-strong preliminary squad.

He has pace and intelligence and both of his goals took some work, particularly the first when he weaved his way around the Sydney defence and lifted the ball cleverly into the net.

The 26-year-old has bagged 10 goals this season to lead the Golden Boot standings by three. It comes after a nomadic few seasons of professional football when many questioned whether he would ever live up to the vast amount of potential he showed as a teenager.

More importantly, Burn's efforts saw Wellington claim their third win on the road this season and leapfrog Sydney on the table.

"We are just changing the mindset a bit that it doesn't matter if we are playing at home or on the road," goalkeeper Glen Moss said. "Our away record hasn't been great and that's something we have tried to focus on this year and results have been pretty good so far.

"We really came here and thought we could get something out of it. We rode the storm for a little while when they put us under pressure but I'm so happy to get the win.
"We have the belief we are good enough and fit enough to score in the last minute of the first minute."

Sydney looked like they would be the ones opening the scoring after dominating the first half - they enjoyed 61 per cent of possession and had eight shots on goal to Wellington's three - and one terrific Moss save kept his side on level terms.

Wellington's midfield struggled to gain parity in the warm conditions and on the bumpy Allianz Stadium surface, but they managed to work their way in to the game during the second spell. They enjoyed greater possession, without really threatening, until Burns injected himself on the game.

The Phoenix will return to the comforts of home when they host the struggling Western Sydney Wanderers in Wellington on Sunday.

The Wanderers, despite their success in the Asian Champions League, have struggled this season and are anchored to the foot of the A-League ladder.

"We have at tonne of belief and wanted to get to that top four and kick on from there," Moss said.

With Burns and Krishna in full flight, it's entirely possible.