Phoenix v Sydney FC live play-by-play

BY SCOTT PRESTON

Welcome to Stuff.co.nz's live play-by-play blog for the A-League preliminary final between the Wellington Phoenix and Sydney FC at the Sydney Football Stadium.

Kick-off is scheduled for 10pm (NZ time) and we'll have preview information in the lead-up. So keep refreshing here to read the latest on-field happenings as the Wellington Phoenix try to keep their A-League playoffs run going to reach the grand final against the Melbourne Victory.

Send your comments/questions to scott.preston@fairfaxdigital.co.nz or on twitter at www.twitter.com/prestonjscott, and we'll use the best of them.

12.05am: Great season from the Phoenix. Congratulations to the players, coaching staff, front office staff and owner Terry Serepisos. We look forward to the start of the 2010/11 season in August ... remember, that's less than five months away.

Hope you enjoyed our Phoenix A-League playoffs live blogs. Until next time, whenever that may be, it's goodnight from Stuff.co.nz.

11.59pm: You'll hear a lot about the 'Hand of Payne' goal in the first half but really Sydney FC were much much better than the Phoenix on this night. The hand-ball goal did have a big impact, as the Phoenix had just equalised through Andrew Durante but wasn't the reason Wellington lost ... still, football needs technology.

11.57pm: And final whistle ... Sydney FC through to their second A-League grand final. The end of a Cinderella run for the Phoenix.

11.56pm:  A great deal of credit has to go to the Sydney defenisve unit, who held Paul Ifill, Leo Bertos and Tim Brown in check for much of the game.

11.54pm:  Three minutes of added time. Three minutes left in the Phoenix's season.

11.52pm:  The Phoenix continue to push forward but the Sydney defence is not giving this game away. This game has taken the look of an older brother keeping his younger brother at arm's-length while the younger brother punches furiously at air.

11.49pm: The official attendance for the match - 13,196. For a stadium that holds 45,500, that's, ummm, disappointing.

11.47pm: Dadi maneouvres well in the box, getting around his man and into position to score with his head, leaving Clint Bolton standing still. Probably too late for the Phoenix but another quick goal would make the last five plus added time VERY interesting.

11.44pm: GOAL. Eugene Dadi pulls a goal back for the Phoenix in the 81st minute.

11.42pm: Diego on for Phoenix leading goalscorer Paul Ifill in the 80th minute. Great season for Ifill. Didn't see much space tonight and might have been carrying an injury.

11.41pm: Liam Reddy, who will turn out for Sydney FC next season, continues to be the Phoenix's best player, denying dirty hand-ball goal-scorer Chris Payne his hat-trick goal with a save from close-range, after Payne made an exquisite spin-move in the box. Yes, exquisite is the right word.

11.37pm: Alex Brosque beat the offside trap from the Phoenix near mid-field and scampers in, along with Mark Bridge, in a two-on-one situation with Phoenix goalkeeper Liam Reddy. Brosque unselfishly lays it off to Bridge, who heels it in softly to finish off Wellington.

11.35pm: GOAL. Mark Bridge finishes off the Phoenix, making it 4-1 in the 70th minute.

11.32pm: Nice work from Paul Ifill to cross into Eugene Dadi, who back-heels it to Chris Greenacre for a first-time shot that flies off-target. If the Phoenix are going to come from two goals down, they really need to finish any chance they get.

11.31pm: First yellow card of the game to Sydney's Terry McFlynn.

11.30pm: Eugene Dadi on for Tim Brown for the Phoenix.

11.28pm: After Daniel turn the ball over in the midfield, Sydney rush forward and Brosque beat Andrew Durante on the left for pace, holding off the Phoenix captain with one shoulder, guiding a left-foot shot low across Liam Reddy and into the far corner.

11.26pm: GOAL. Alex Brosque makes it 3-1 for Sydney FC in the 62nd minute.

11.25pm: The Phoenix starting to look stretched at the back and being abused by the pace of Brosque, Payne and Bridge. Perhaps time to introduce Ben Sigmund into the back.

Alex Brosque forced a great diving save from Liam Reddy in the 60th minute. Could've put the game away from Sydney there.

11.22pm: Daniel replaces Troy Hearfield in the 59th minute. Still Sydney 2 Wellington 1.

11.21pm: It worked the first time, so why not try it again. From a corner, the Phoenix flick the ball on and almost finds another player on the far post, before Colosimo steps in to deliver a header clearance.

11.17pm: The Phoenix just looking to do everything too quickly on attack at the moment, and passes not going to feet. Maybe just some apprehension. Maybe look for Ricki Herbert to make some substitutions soon, possibly Daniel or Diego in the midfield.

11.13pm: Slow start to the second half, with neither team able to get much going at goal. Now 50 minutes gone. Still 2-1 Sydney FC.

11.08pm: And the second half has kicked-off. No changes to either side.

11.06pm: Comment from reader Keith Sharp: "Great, isn't it? The first time the Phoenix fans could have used the "Same old Aussies - always cheating" chant to genuine effect and none of them saw the handball!" ... nodding head, while wincing.

11.00pm: First half stats, provided by Fox Sports, pretty comparable - Sydney 54% possession, 53% in opponents half, corners 6-4. So despite being dominated for a long stretch in the middle of the first half, the Phoenix have shown they can compete and are not out of this.

10.54pm: And as Paul Ifill hits the worse cross you could ever see, the referee Peter Green blows for halftime. Sydney FC 2 (Chris Payne 21, 31) Wellington Phoenix 1 (Andrew Durante 27)

10.52pm: The Phoenix working their way back into the game, starting to give the Sydney defence some nervous moments at the back. Simon Colosimo made a great play to head away a dangerous cross for a corner.

10.50pm: Two mintues of stoppage time to be played in this first half.

10.48pm: Paul Ifill holds off his man, Stefan Keller, turns and almost curls in a right-foot shot from just outside the penalty area. Nice work from Ifill, who until that point had been held very quiet by the Sydney FC defenders.

10.43pm: We're at the 38-minute mark of the first half now. Sydney FC 2 Wellington Phoenix 1.

10.42pm: As someone who loves that technology allows me to watch live TV on my mobile or that I could do a full day's work without leaving bed, it's nothing short of disgraceful that sports - I'm talking to you football, cricket and baseball - continue to not use technology. There's much more to this rant but I'll spare you.

10.39pm: Television replays clearly show the ball going high into the net off Chris Payne's left arm. Liam Reddy and the Phoenix defence immediate go nuts, appealing to the referee and linesman on the near side. But to no avail. Goal stands and Payne celebrates like he actually got a head on it.

10.37pm: GOAL. Chris Payne scores but we'll hear more about this if the Phoenix lose.

10.35pm: Great planned free-kick move from a free-kick by the Phoenix. Captain and Phoenix player of the year Andrew Durante scores his first goal in 85 A-League games, heading in on the far post from a flick-on header from Vince Lia's cross.

10.33pm: GOAL. Andrew Durante. Yes Andrew Durante! ANDREW DURANTE. Heads in to equalise for the Phoenix in the 26th minute in front of The Cove.

10.31pm: And no I don't take any pleasure in predicting that goal a few minutes earlier.

10.30pm: Chris Payne started in place of John Aloisi, who is struggling with a hamstring injury, and did some great work for that goal. He caught Tony Lochhead ball watching as he gave a give-and-go to get behind Lochhead, then held him off and rolled the shot under Liam Reddy.

10.27pm: GOAL. Sydney FC go up 1-0 in the 21st minute through Chris Payne.

10.22pm: A comment from reader Rory Murray, he's picking the Phoenix on penalties. That would be my ideal finish. Love the shootout.

10.21pm: The Phoenix just struggling to keep hold of possession against the furious defence from Sydney at the moment. We've seen this at times from the Phoenix this season, so don't think it's anything to be majorly concerned with at this stage.

Concerning though is the ease with which Sydney seem to be able to get behind Wellington's defence at the moment. Wouldn't surprise me if a goal came soon.

10.17pm: Sydney have come out super-aggressive, especially in the midfield, rushing up to shut down the Phoenix players before they can turn.

Alex Brosque again makes a dangerous run on the left, and squares the ball into the middle of the area but no Sydney players there to meet it.

10.14pm: Terrific save by Wellington's Liam Reddy. Alex Brosque found some space past Troy Hearfield on the left edge of the penalty area, Hearfield got a deflection on the shot and Reddy made a kick-save.

10.12pm: Teams just feeling each other out at this point. A couple of early attacks from the Phoenix that did not come to much when the ball was delivered into the area.

10.10pm: Good to hear an 'Oh Wellington is wonderful' chant from the Yellow Fever on the TV mics. Early advantage Phoenix.

10.07pm: And we've got kick-off.

Poor stadium/seating/ticketing planning by the SFS, with the stand on the far-side, in full sight of the TV cameras half-empty at-best. Just shows Sydney doesn't quite get on a bandwagon like Wellington. Disappointing for a game at this stage.

10.05pm: And back here in Wellington, reports are that Four Kings, the venue for the Phoenix's after-match functions, is full and there's a line outside waiting to get in.

Yes, this live play-by-play is coming to you from the Stuff Newsroom in Central Wellington. I thought I was a talisman for the Phoenix in these playoffs but didn't get the call-up to head to Sydney. The editor already agreed to take full blame for a loss.

10.03pm: Just waiting for the teams to come out to the field now. The Cove looks in full force already in support of the Sky Blues but there is a good contingent of Yellow Fever members in Sydney tonight.

9.59pm: According to the A-League website, this is how the teams will run out tonight:

Sydney FC: Clint Bolton, Sebastian Ryall, Stephan Keller, Simon Colosimo, Sung Hwan Byun, Karol Kisel, Stuart Musialik, Terry McFlynn, Mark Bridge, Alex Brosque, John Aloisi. Substitutes: Ivan Necevski, Brendan Gan, Hayden Foxe, Antony Golec, Chris Payne.

Wellington Phoenix: Liam Reddy, Troy Hearfield, Andrew Durante, Jon McKain, Tony Lochhead, Manny Muscat, Vince Lia, Tim Brown, Paul Ifill, Leo Bertos, Chris Greenacre. Substitutes: Reece Crowther, Ben Sigmund, Daniel, Diego, Eugene Dadi.

9.55pm: Fox Sports commentator Mark Bosnich just said Alex Brosque, Mark Bridge and John Aloisi were the key players up front for Sydney, so look out for that match-up against the Nix defensive quartet and defensive mids.

9.50pm: If you're wondering how the Phoenix have competed historically against A-League FC, I mean, Sydney FC, then you're in luck because I actually remembered a lesson from journalism school just in time to do some research ahead of time.

In nine meetings in the last three seasons, Sydney has five wins, the Phoenix three and one draw. At the SFS - the Sydney Football Stadium - it has been three wins for Sydney and two for Wellington in five games. The Phoenix have not beaten Sydney since November 2008, a 2-1 win coming at ... the SFS.

9.45pm:  Ricki Herbert just interviewd on Fox Sports. He looked super-relaxed. Let's hope the players are feeling equally loose.

- © Fairfax NZ News