A-League: Wellington coach Mark Rudan keeps the faith

Wellington coach Mark Rudan remains confident his players have the belief to bounce back

Wellington coach Mark Rudan is confident his team can bounce back.

It was a sobering result that will pose questions about Wellington Phoenix’s finals credentials, but coach Mark Rudan remains con­fident his players have the belief to bounce back and continue their resurgence this season.

The undermanned Kiwis, minus three key players, came back to earth after A-League leaders Perth Glory flexed their muscles to come away with a 3-0 win at HBF Park on Saturday night.

Phoenix have now managed just four points from a possible 12 from their past four games.

It could cast doubt on their ­finals prospects, with the Newcastle Jets eight points behind and breathing down their necks.

There will be more pressure on the Kiwis next week when they travel to Newcastle, followed by games against second-placed Melbourne Victory and third-placed Sydney FC.

As a former no-holds-barred defender who had to play under extreme pressure at times, it is understandable Rudan isn’t too perturbed about the situation.

“Good teams react positively and we have done that before,” Rudan said. “We lost against Sydney and got that reaction. We have taken points off every team in the competition and not one has taken full points against us.

“That’s what gives us confidence and belief and that is what we will carry into the business end of the season. I am sure we will bounce back.”

Rudan had no qualms about Saturday night’s result, declaring Perth the competition’s best team.

“They fully deserved to win, no dramas, and I have nothing but praise for them,” he said.

“They are the best team in the competition and they are where they are for a reason.

“For us, we are still learning, me, the club, the players. I keep stressing to the players that we have not achieved anything yet and need to continue to improve.

“You take a couple of steps forward and tonight we took one back. It is disappointing but we have to ensure it doesn’t happen again because that is what good teams do.”

Rudan refused to make excuses, but it was clear Phoenix suffered through the loss of experienced defenders Steven Taylor (virus) and Andrew Durante (suspended) and influential midfielder Muni, who stayed back in Wellington because his wife was due to give birth.

Glory did all that was asked of them as they broke a club record in keeping a clean sheet for the fourth game in succession. That comes as no surprise as it is something coach Tony Popovic has worked on tirelessly since he took the reins at the start of the season.

“It is a great achievement and I was only made aware of it after the game. I’m delighted for the players and club because that is not easy to do,” Popovic said.

Meanwhile, there has been concern about how the last 11 weeks of the A-League will pan out, given the top six has looked cut and dried for some time, but the Central Coast Mariners v Melbourne Victory and Adelaide United v Brisbane Roar games showed there is still plenty of life left in the competition.

First, wooden spooners-in-waiting Central Coast gave Victory a huge fright, jumping to a 2-0 lead through two wondrous free kicks from Andrew Hoole before the Victorians turned on the after burners to eke out a 3-2 win thanks to a late goal from Kosta Barbarouses.

But it was the incredible Adelaide game at Coopers Stadium that was the talking point as the Reds produced the best comeback of the season, overturning a 3-0 deficit to win 4-3 in injury time.

United had Ken Ilso sent off in just the ninth minute and the visit­ors took full advantage to score three times between the 21st and 43rd minutes.

United got one back on half time but still the game looked beyond them.

However, it all changed within five minutes of madness from the Roar. First Dane Ingham was sent off for a second yellow card after foolishly kicking the ball away.

Goalkeeper Jamie Young followed soon after, inexplicably coming out of his area to crash into Craig Goodwin, leaving his side down to nine men.

Goodwin got it back to 3-2 minutes later then George Blackwood equalised in the 75th minute.

The final sting in the tail came deep into injury time when Nikola Mileusnic got the winner, sending the home fans and coach Marco Kurz into delirium.