Saturday, February 5, 2011

Adelaide United 0-1 Wellington Phoenix: Kiwis earn place in finals

Adelaide United 0-1 Wellington Phoenix

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Wellington Phoenix celebrated their 100th A-League game with a 1-0 win away to third-placed Adelaide United at Hindmarsh Stadium tonight.

The win ensured Wellington of a place in the finals series and it was the first time they had beaten United in Adelaide in six meetings.

Both sides had good scoring chances in the opening minutes and both suffered ill fortune when Adelaide’s Cassio and Wellington’s Lia had to limp off injured in the first half within minutes of each other.

The goal came in the 34th minute from an excellent diving header by Chris Greenacre from Marco Rojas’s precise right-wing cross.

Wellington keeper Danny Vukovic kept his side’s lead intact with a marvellous save from Paul Reid in a one-on-one situation a minute before the break.

Adelaide custodian Eugene Galekovic came to his side’s rescue in the 58th minute when he got down to turn Tim Brown’s powerful low shot wide for a corner.

Adelaide came close to equalising in the 67th minute when Travis Dodd broke down the right and fired through the legs of Vukovic. The ball appeared to be going wide of the far post when defender Jade North, in attempting to clear, chipped the ball against his own crossbar, after which it was cleared properly by a team-mate.

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Adelaide United: Galekovic - Watson, Boogaard, Reid, Cassio (Malik 31) - Usucar, Bodrusic (Hughes 46), Flores, Ramsay (Slory 62) - Dodd, Van Dijk (Sub not used: Birighitti)

Wellington Phoenix: Vukovic - Hearfield, North, Durante, Lochhead - Lia (Daniel 27), Brown, Ward, Rojas - Greenacre, MacAllister (Subs not used: Cornejo, Musa, Crowther)

Booked: Brown, Hearfield, Durante

Goals: Greenacre 34

Att: 10,000

Ref: M Breeze

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