Take a look at the highlights from the Ninja A-League encounter between Wellington Phoenix and Western United.
Western United fell short of clinching a home elimination final after settling for a 1-1 draw with Wellington Phoenix in a match that marked the farewell of both head coach Paul Temple and captain Annalie Longo from the club.
After knocking on the door for 75 minutes in New Zealand, Western United finally broke through as Sara Eggesvik scored with a powerful header from a corner, sending the ball soaring into the top corner amid the pouring rain at Porirua Park.
However, Western’s lead lasted a mere five minutes before Emma Main anticipatively intercepted the ball just ahead of goalkeeper Alyssa Dall’Oste, converting from close range to level the match at 1-1.
This draw means Western United will not have the opportunity to host a home elimination final at Ironbark Fields, finishing the regular season in sixth place. They now face a challenging away match against Adelaide United in the first round of the Finals Series.
As for Wellington, Temple’s team concluded the season in ninth place in what was his last match during a nearly decade-long tenure, while club captain Longo also confirmed her departure from the team after the game.
Wellington Phoenix aimed to send head coach Paul Temple off with a victory, while Western United understood that a win at Porirua Park was crucial for securing a home elimination final.
The visitors nearly opened the scoring within the first seven minutes when Isabel Dehakiz’s close-range effort was deflected onto the post by Nix keeper Carolina Vilao, trickling along the line before being cleared.
After knocking on the door for the initial 30 minutes, Western believed they had finally found the breakthrough in the 34th minute, only to have Chloe Berryhill’s header deemed offside before it found the back of the net.
A worrying moment for the visitors occurred when influential skipper Berryhill was substituted for Aimee Medwin after appearing to sustain a muscular injury in the first half.
Starting the second half in a similar fashion to the first, Western searched for the opener and nearly found it were it not for some impressive late intervention from Wellington’s defence.
Totally against the run of play, Wellington came inches away from taking the lead in the 64th minute, but Grace Jale was unable to make contact with a dangerous ball at the back post.
Nonetheless, the visitors eventually secured the all-important goal in the 75th minute through Eggesvik’s header.
Breaking free of her marker at a corner, the Philippines international unleashed a powerful header that flew past Vilao and into the net, propelling Western up into fourth place on the live ladder.
That positioning, however, was short-lived.
With Nix captain Annalie Longo substituted to a standing ovation in her last match for the club, the home supporters’ noise increased even further in the 80th minute when Nix snatched the equaliser amidst the lashing rain.
Charging down the right flank, Manaia Elliott delivered a low cross into the six-yard box, which Main deftly directed home to level the score at 1-1 at Porirua Park.
As both teams clamoured for a late winner, the match became a frenetic end-to-end affair, with Western coming perilously close to clinching a victory.
After being awarded a free-kick from 25 metres out, Western winger Adriana Taranto stepped up to deliver a curling shot that evaded substitute keeper Brooke Neary, crashing off the crossbar instead.
Wellington then nearly snatched the win themselves when Alyssa Whinham attempted a dipping shot from the edge of the area, a strike that was destined for the back of the net, only denied by a fingertip save from goalkeeper Dall’Oste.
Compiled by SportArena.com.au.
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