R14 v WSW | Sat 11 Jan | 4:45pm | RoF/SS7

Just as you predicted with your typical optimism

How satisfying was that goal.

That was such a brilliant goal. Defenders just don't know which way he's going, he's shimmying constantly in the run and can shoot off both feet.

Fantastic young player.

so tactics are Davila runs at them in the first and Libby runs at them in the second?

Think Sutton has done pretty well

Libby's change of pace is something else. Looks like he's coasting and then turns on the afterburners.

they talk irrelevant bollocks from wo to go, don't know how you can listen to them. 

also NZ Herald- love the Tribe updates, but why are they sitting in a lengthy negative story about Wilson? 

9 unbeaten! just like I knew they would with my anti jinx.

Genuinely the most satisfying of the season so far for me.

Don't break the spell!

Try following the Fox Sport coverage. Both half time and now post match the only, and I mean only thing they have talked about is how poor WSW have been. Not one single positive comment about the Nix except that the result was deserved.

Comment on Libby's goal from Slater: it was a goalkeeping mistake!

wahoo, a win and a clean sheet - I am on the piss tonight!!

COYN

Cacace actually had a quiet game (assured without fireworks) and the goal was a beautiful icing on the cake.

Davila speaks good English which clearly makes for a better team communication.

Thought he was on fire in the first 15 like most of the team then dropped back. Last 15 in 2nd half he got back to normal.

Good work to Sam Sutton who worked his ass off.

result?...at wedding 

very poor second half apart from Libby's wonderful strike,I think we have only played about seventy minutes of good football in the last two games (first twenty five today were sublime)we defended well but seemed to lack any fizz going forward for long parts of the match,anyway another three points and still not at 100 percent so it can't be bad!

Us 2-0. Drink up!

I've just finished watching it on a ferry between Krabi and Phuket. Find a stream with no Aussie or Kiwi commentary, Bliss.  

Also damn Thailand has awesome 4G. No way could I have watched that in Europe or Australasia on a boat at sea.

A true fan, that man. He deserves a DB a finely crafted TeAro microbrewery beverage.

Except for mis-quoting me with Fenix's anti-Piney review I agree!

Libby’s agent earning his 15%....

IMO he's not wrong... 

Never got the bet on! 

Davila is just unreal. Do we have him after this season?

Great game. We are getting spoilt now for all the top performances we are putting out. Not as good as some of the previous weeks but felt we were in control for majority of the game.

Three points of improvement;

1) Hooper isn't fit yet. Hopefully it will come, but the touches and runs weren't quite there tonight.

2) Sotirio needs to drop to the bench when 1 of Ball or Piscopo comes back. He's not doing what hes even good at atm and thats running all day and tiring out defenders. 

3) In the last two games midfield has gone quiet in spells in the 2nd half. Need to make sure Steini and Devlin stay influential. 

Three Positive points.

1) Libby. Finally. Gets his goal from a mazy run. He is phenomenal and deserves a top European club.

2) Luke Devere and the defence. I was one of his biggest critics earlier on but hes sort of followed the same trajectory as the team. Has only got better and better. Looks assured and composed now, which hasn't always been the case with him. Defence looks like a unit

3) Cammy Devlin - He is a terrier. he can pass, he can defend and tackle. What I like the most right now is his confidence and conviction. Bosses the park. Demands the ball. Constantly talking. Not overawed by any means.

Honorary mention: Davila. Need I say anything more?

Enjoy the moment. Moments like these are few and fleeting when the nix are on a roll. Dare to dream?

He’s contracted, yes.

With the likes of Libby and Davila, Think we have a chance of going all the way this year subject to two critical factors:

1: We stay injury free

2: Hooper gets fit quickly and shows why he was a premiership striker

I doubt if we've ever been this spoilt. Rufer still out injured, Hooper not quite fit yet, Ball with a minor niggle and Piscopo on international duty. This is certainly a very strong Nix squad. 

Honorary mention today: for the last bit of game today, we had a Sutton, Waine, McCowatt front line. How good is that for the club and NZ football?

Yeah was trying to tie both conversations together to highlight how much better it is to hear neither, just the ref, players and yellow fever singing.

(Not easy on a ferry).

Still 2/3 teams better than us right now.

bollocks we can take anyone

I disagree with the need to drop Sotirio to the bench when Ball / Piscopo  are back. To the contrary I think he plays much better when either or both are on the park because he can play at their speed. He can't do that with Hooper (who can't quite run that fast consistently yet)  or with Davila because Davila does not rely on speed to be effective.

Sotirio is an excellent supporting player when he is alongside a better (skilful) player who has good vision and operates at speed. Ball is that player. McCowatt is not yet able to do that with Sotirio but may with time.

On the train back now. Overall, I really enjoyed that today. Didn't feel like we were in any serious trouble and when there might be a hint of it, marinovic had us easily covered. 

Crowd. Really nice healthy crowd, had the weather been better, I reckon we'd have hit the 10k mark. 

Yellow fever : big shout out to you guys, kept the singing up almost for the whole game and got the crowd involved. Especially with the stand up for the phoenix chant. Was far better than last ?

Game: awesome first half I thought, absolutely bossed it and could have been 3 up by the time we were 1-0 up. Davila goal was more than deserved. Didn't think McCowatt had his best game. I always expect him to be faster than he is. He definitely has it in his locker, a skillful player that I have no doubt about. Second half we were more assured than last week but seemed like we were sitting back too much and didn't really have an outlet after sotirio went off. Hooper was left isolated then after he went off, nothing much happened up front. Iibbys goal though. That was the goal we've been waiting for. Fudgeing love watching him play and he's gonna have a great career. So assured for someone so young and that engine, exactly what we were missing in the first 4 games imo. 

Chuffed to bits with that. Well done all! 

Soooo pleased to get another win, seemingly get no injuries, and no cards(?). Happy Hooper played longer mins although after about an hour he was a bit of a passenger in my opinion. Good work crowd, 9k must be the best we’ve had for a while surely.

What’s the story with Ball? Does it sound like he’ll play next week? As much as I’m like yay we’re playing lowly Brisbane next week, I have got the ‘Royz’ about it since I see they just snagged a point against City.

Perth and Sydney maybe Adelaide....but up there. Sydney will easily win regular season but play offs could be very interesting

When Libby is coming forward with the ball, our expectation is suddenly elevated. Wow, the speed, power, precision.
Not sure on MOM, Devlin? Uli? Libby?

FTBL review 

Wellington Phoenix equalled their club record nine matches unbeaten as they continued their impressive recent form with a 2-0 victory over Western Sydney Wanderers.

The first half was dominated by the men in yellow, their passing crisper and more menacing, with Wanderers ponderous when they did get the ball.

The little master Ulises Davila - by far the standout player on the field - deservedly opened the scoring after hitting the post with a similar effort moments before.

Gary Hooper expertly laid off the ball to him on the edge of the Wanderers box and the attacker did the rest, taking a quick look up before unleashing a driven shot into the bottom left hand corner of the net.

Wanderers, to their credit, did their utmost to find a way back into the game.

Mitchell Duke came close on three separate occasions, with powerful shots that unfortunately couldn't find their target.

Phoenix sealed the three points in the later stages, however, when the excellent Liberato Cacace drove forward from left back, jinked into the box past Dylan McCowan and nestled his shot past the scrambling Daniel Lopar.

Given their earlier struggles, this win remarkably brings Phoenix into third spot in the A-League table, just one point behind Melbourne City.

They next face Brisbane Roar and who would currently count against them finding another victory there?

As for the woeful Wanderers, Markus Babbel is a man under massive pressure.

They occupy eighth position, a mere five points from last spot, and things don't get any easier next weekend when the in-form Perth Glory come to visit them in Sydney.

WELLINGTON PHOENIX

Stefan Marinovic - 6

Was steady in the home goal and was rarely troubled by Wanderers in truth.

Tim Payne - 6

Enjoyed a good battle with Duke down his right hand side of the pitch. A solid defender.

Luke DeVere - 5.5

Had a few tense moments when Wanderers appealed for penalty calls but he escaped unscathed.

Steven Taylor - 6.5

Led by example as always and ensured the Wanderers attack were restricted to little space.

Liberato Cacace - 7.5

A delight when moving forward with the ball from defence. His speed and movement were too much in the leadup to his goal.

Matti Steinmann - 6

A steady operator at the base of midfield. Calmly offered the ball to the more expressive players in front of him to do the damage in attack.

Cameron Devlin - 6

Similar to his partner Steinmann. Kept it simple in possession and put in several robust tackles to limit Wanderers momentum.

Ulises Davila - 8.5

What a talent. The Wanderers defence couldn’t handle his dribbling, his movement, and his creativity. Took his goal well.

Jaushua Sotirio - 6

An able diminutive partner to the more lethal Davila but not as much came off for him.

Callum McCowatt - 7

Had a strong game down the left in attack. Always ran at his man and never shied away from possession.

Gary Hooper - 7

Tired in the second half as he finds maximum fitness but was a class act in the first half. His link up play with Davila was a joy to behold.

Substitutes

Te Atawhai Hudson-Wihongi - 4.5

No time to show what he’s got.

Sam Sutton - 5.5

Through himself into proceedings with appreciative gusto. Not afraid to make some tough challenges.

Ben Waine - 4.5

Similar to Hudson-Wihongi. More opportunities will come.

Steinemann for me. He's a class act. Conducts the Nix orchestra - he is the bloke we've been searching for in that position since Riera left. 

Not down at all on the others of course, but I think his contribution is often underrated.