The Wellington Phoenix have secured a place in the 2025 Hahn Australia Cup, producing a dogged and disciplined performance to win their playoff and finish their season on a high.
The Phoenix have beaten the Brisbane Roar 1-0 at Darwin Football Stadium thanks to a 39th minute goal from veteran forward Kosta Barbarouses, who was teed up 17-year-old Gabriel Sloane-Rodrigues.
The Nix defended resolutely and sensibly after taking the lead, with the match kicking off in 31 degree heat with high humidity, and held on despite being reduced to 10 men in the 89th minute.
The result ensures Wellington will be in the last 32 of the Australia Cup which is a key part of the team’s pre-season for the 2025-26 Isuzu UTE A-League.
Head coach Giancarlo Italiano was delighted with the result.
“I’m really happy because I felt like we went back to the things that worked for us for a long period,” Italiano told Football Australia post-match.
“I was a bit worried travelling out here. It was a full day of travel the other day [and] we’ve had a pretty poor run of form the last month so it was a good reason for a lot of the boys to give up and not give everything but they did give everything which was the most important part.
“We got into the mindset of protecting the lead very early on, probably because we haven’t been in a lot of games where we’re leading, but I thought they defended really well today.”
Head coach Giancarlo Italiano made four changes to the side which started the disappointing 2-0 final round defeat to Perth Glory with Matthew Sheridan, Paulo Retre, Nathan Walker and Sloane-Rodrigues replacing the injured Corban Piper and Isaac Hughes, and Luke Brooke-Smith and Kazuki Nagasawa who were named amongst the substitutes.
Back-up goalkeeper Dublin Boon, young centre back Jayden Smith and reserves forward Dan Makowem were also promoted to the bench.
The Phoenix made a bright start and created two opportunities inside the first five minutes.
The first fell to Hideki Ishige, but the ball got stuck under his feet and he wasn’t able to direct a shot on target.
Sam Sutton picked out Barbarouses with a pinpoint ball from the left flank soon after and the All Whites forward shot straight at Matt Acton in Brisbane’s goal.
Moments later Nix ‘keeper Josh Oluwayemi made a sharp save to keep out a header from Roar striker Asumah Abubakar.
They should have taken the lead from the penalty spot in the 11th minute when Oluwayemi brought down Roar winger Henry Hore in the Wellington box, but Jay O’Shea blasted his spot kick against the crossbar.
Brisbane dominated the ball for the next 20 or so minutes but weren’t able to test Oluwayemi further, with the goalkeeper only called upon to make a couple of regulation saves.
Italiano was forced to make an early substitution in the 36th minute after Walker was injured following a bad foul from Roar centre back Hosine Bility. Bility was lucky to escape with just a yellow card and there was no Video Assistant Referee to bring the challenge to the referee’s attention as there’s no VAR in the Australia Cup.
The Phoenix came close from the resulting free kick, with Acton doing well to keep out a powerful left-footed shot from Alex Rufer.
The Nix took the lead soon after with Sloane-Rodrigues starting and finishing a Wellington attack. He made a mazy run in field from the left flank and found Brooke-Smith, who was on in place of Walker, and he returned the ball to Sloane-Rodrigues who delivered a first-time cross-come-shot which beat Acton and Barbarouses made sure of it by heading into an open net.
Abubakar had the chance to draw the Roar level in the 45th minute but he scooped his shot over the bar from six yards out.
The Phoenix frustrated Brisbane in the second half with a well-organised defensive showing.
It took the Roar 20 minutes after halftime to register their next shot on target with Oluwayemi making a good save to push a powerful Jay O’Shea shot around his right-hand post.
He made an even better stop 10 minutes later to deny Brisbane substitute Ben Halloran one-on-one after the Nix coughed up possession deep inside their own half.
Acton made a good one-on-one save of his own in the 80th minute to keep out an effort from Brooke-Smith after Barbarouses had slipped the 16-year-old through on goal with a perfectly weighted pass.
Oluwayemi made another save soon after to stop another attempt on goal from Halloran and keep Wellington in front.
The Phoenix went down to 10 men in the 89th minute when Rufer received a second yellow card for a foul on his opposite O’Shea.
The Nix continued to defend well a player down but the Roar came within inches of sending the game into extra time with virtually the last touch of stoppage time. Bility headed a left-wing corner against the crossbar, much to Wellington’s relief.
The Wellington Phoenix will make the long journey home tomorrow and will then part ways before reassembling for the start of pre-season training in July.
Wellington Phoenix: 1. Josh OLUWAYEMI (gk), 4. Scott WOOTTON, 7. Kosta BARBAROUSES, 8. Paulo RETRE (5. Fin ROA CONCHIE 87th), 9. Hideki ISHIGE, 14. Alex RUFER (c), 17. Gabriel SLOANE-RODRIGUES (25. Kazuki NAGASAWA 90th), 18. Lukas KELLY-HEALD, 19. Sam SUTTON, 27. Matthew SHERIDAN, 41. Nathan WALKER (29. Luke BROOKE-SMITH 36th).
Unused substitutes: 30. Dublin BOON (gk), 23. Luke SUPYK, 39. Jayden SMITH, 44. Dan MAKOWEM.
Brisbane Roar: 29. Matt ACTON (gk), 10. Florin BERENGUER (18. Jacob BRAZETE 58th), 11. Asumah ABUBAKAR, 12. Lucas HERRINGTON, 13. Henry HORE (8. Walid SHOUR 75th), 15. Hosine BILITY, 19. Jack HINGERT (43. Adam ZIMARINO 87th), 21. Antonee BURKE-GILROY, 23. Keegan JELACIC (27. Ben HALLORAN 58th), 24. Sam KLEIN, 26. Jay O’SHEA (c).
Unused substitutes: 1. Macklin FREKE (gk), 6. Austin LUDWIK, 35. Louis ZABALA.
Goals:
7. Kosta BARBAROUSES (Wellington Phoenix) – 39th
Cards:
15. Hosine BILITY (Brisbane Roar) – yellow – 34th
19. Jack HINGERT (Brisbane Roar) – yellow – 53rd
7. Kosta BARBAROUSES (Wellington Phoenix) – yellow – 53rd
26. Jay O’SHEA (Brisbane Roar) – yellow – 61st
14. Alex RUFER (Wellington Phoenix) – yellow – 64th
24. Sam KLEIN (Brisbane Roar) – yellow – 70th
Michael Valkanis (Brisbane Roar) – yellow – 88th
14. Alex RUFER (Wellington Phoenix) – yellow/red – 89th
Main image: Wellington Phoenix players celebrate Kosta Barbarouses’ 39th minute goal. Photo: Football Australia.
