v Adelaide Sat 5th Feb 9pm SS1

Jade North

Jade North is relaxed about being thrown straight back into Hyundai A-League action for Wellington Phoenix this weekend.

North has been away with the Socceroos in Qatar since the beginning of the year and trained with his Phoenix team-mates for the first time in weeks on Wednesday.

But the 29-year-old defender will be rushed into the starting line-up for Saturday's crucial match against Adelaide United after Ben Sigmund received his eighth yellow card of the season in the 1-0 win over Newcastle Jets, which earned him a two-game ban.

"I only played two games while I was away and I've been training pretty hard every day so the body feels okay and I've had a run out with the team today," said North.

The Australian has kept in touch with Wellington's progress in the last month or so as they have battled their way into the top six thanks to some good home form which has produced wins against Melbourne Victory, Perth Glory and Newcastle.

"The boys have been doing well since I've been away," he said. "There were a few text messages back and forth and I've watched a few games on the internet."

The away hoodoo however, has continued to haunt the Phoenix and they will need to remedy that immediately given Saturday's match is swiftly followed by a midweek fixture in Sydney before they return home for what should be a straightforward game against North Queensland Fury in Wellington.

But talk of settling for a point against Adelaide and Sydney was quickly quashed by North.

"I'm not looking at a point I'm looking to win two games," he declared. "You've got to be positive this time of year. It's do or die for us now. I'm expecting to go and get the points."

"Knowing the Phoenix, they showed this time last year this is the time they peak."

While North's return solves the problem of Sigmund's absence, coach Ricki Herbert will also be without impressive midfielder Manny Muscat for the next two matches courtesy of his eight yellow cards.

But rather than press someone into an unfamiliar defensive midfield role, Herbert is likely to play four across the middle and go with Chris Greenacre and Dylan Macallister up front with young defender James Musa coming onto the bench.

"I think Ben has been playing extremely well and Manny has been great too but we'll cope without them," a bullish Herbert said.

The coach is also very much aware that his skipper Andrew Durante is only one yellow card away from a two-match suspension as well and hinted he could limit the centre-back's game-time to protect him.

"I'll start him against Adelaide but I wouldn't say there's any guarantee that I'll play him fully in both matches," Herbert said.

"We'll just have to wait and see. There are games tonight (Wednesday) and games at the weekend. Depending on some of those results we may be able to leave him out."

It's a pity they will only play one more regular season game at home on Feb 13th. They are a team in red hot form at the moment and looking at how the teams sit going into the last few games if all goes to plan they will probably finish in sixth position. Again they will be relying on results falling their way and Melbourne did them a huge favour in beating the Jets overnight.

This part of the equation has had a habit of favouring the Nix all season.

Ricki Herbert won't have it all going his way however as he will be without two crucial figures in Ben Sigmund and Manny Muscat who will miss the next two games through suspension. Both players have been stand outs for me recently. They are the glue that holds their central structure together.

Jade North will be a worthy replacement for Sigmund returning to the line up after a heart breaking Asian Cup campaign with the Socceroos. I have a feeling Chris Greenacre will get Muscat's spot although we may see the team revert to a 4-4-2 formation with Greenacre partnering the in form Dylan Macallister up front. Ward and Rojas will occupy their wide roles with Vince Lia and Tim Brown marshalling the midfield.

Hoping to sneak under the yellow card radar will be skipper Andrew Durante who is one yellow away from a two match suspension.

Football can be a killer sometimes. The Phoenix were minutes away form a fantastic result at the Brisbane Roar last week.

A point there would have eased the pressure somewhat on the Adelaide and Sydney games. Any sort of points in either of these two games would be fantastic and boost confidence knowing that a sixth place finish would mean another trip to Adelaide or possibly the Gold Coast.

Character and squad depth will be tested yet again and Ricki Herbert will need to be shrewd in how he uses his bench. James Musa will more than likely come into the squad as defensive cover while Mirjan Pavlovic may also get a call up and may play a role depending on results. They can take heart that whilst the away results have not been ideal their overall performances have been solid.