Wellington Phoenix v Melbourne Victory 24 - Aug -- 2008

Wellington Phoenix v Melbourne Victory 24 - Aug -- 2008 Victory win in Wellington Two first-half goals from Danny Allsop have enabled Melbourne Victory to see off Wellington Phoenix 4-2 in a dramatic A-League match in rainy Wellington. The Phoenix's Achilles heel last season reared its head again, with Allsop taking full advantage of defensive blunders to have Melbourne leading 2-1 at half-time. Ney Fabiano nudged Melbourne further ahead three minutes into the second half after yet another error in defence by the Phoenix and the result looked settled on the difficult surface. Then came some dramatic moments when each side was awarded a penalty within a few minutes of each other. Matthew Kemp's challenge inside the box on Phoenix defender Jon McKain looked rather tame but Shane Smeltz scored from the spot kick for his second goal to close the gap to 3-2. Barely a couple of minutes later, McKain was whistled up for dangerous play on Carlos Hernandez, and Kevin Muscat, who had set up Fabiano's goal, sent Phoenix keeper Glen Moss the wrong way to increase Melbourne's lead. What hurt the Phoenix more than the penalty was the way they gave up the first three goals. Allsop's calm and patient approach upfront on the wet and slippery surface rewarded him with the opening two. After Phoenix had made most play in the first 16 minutes, Allsop received the ball on the left and while nothing looked on at the stage, his low strike beat Moss for his first goal. Allsop was unlucky not to get his second a couple of minutes later when his goalbound shot over Moss was headed out by Michael Ferrante. Melbourne could have increased their lead a couple of minutes later but Billy Celeski headed just over from barely five metres following a corner kick. With that hectic period trying to keep their goal intact behind them, the Phoenix defence and midfield appeared attack minded. Manny Muscat and Adam Kwasnik combined in the middle and Tony Lochhead threaded his way clear to the left and lobbed back a cross which striker Shane Smeltz headed in for the equaliser. Matthew Kemp intercepted a back pass from Phoenix and found a clear Allsop on the left side of the box. The 30-year-old calmly stroked the ball in for his second goal in the 34th minute. It took Melbourne just three minutes in the second half to take advantage of yet another Phoenix error at the back to increase their lead. Kevin Muscat beat an approaching Moss at the edge of the box and his cross was first-timed by Ney Fabiano into the net even though he had his back to the goal. Carlos Hernandez drilled a 30m shot off the left post as Melbourne continued to break down the defence on the left side of the field. Phoenix looked more promising when veteran Vaughan Coveny replaced Daniel Cortes in the 58th minute and a Smeltz left footer from 20m was deflected onto the left post by a Melbourne defender. The penalties followed, keeping the small crowd that had braved the rain keen. 24 August 2008 | 17:03 - AAP http://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/a-league/victory-win-in-wellington-129703/

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YouTube | August 24, 2008

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