Scott Wootton of the Phoenix celebrates victory on the final whistle during the A-League Men round 17 match between Macarthur FC and Wellington Phoenix. Photo: Mark Metcalfe
If you were still looking for a sign that the Wellington Phoenix are destined for A-League Men's glory this season, the weekend's result over Macarthur FC provided one.
Not only did they overcome the third-placed Bulls 2-1, but also a mass build-up of casualties and the elements as thunderstorms threatened the eventually delayed Campbelltown fixture.
But perhaps most shocking of all is that the long-term heel in the Phoenix's A-League story performed a huge face turn on Sunday night: the officials.
The Phoenix got the rub of the green with decisions in New South Wales at the weekend, which is not something fans of the club are used to uttering. Finn Surman appeared to catch striker Valerie Germain in the box with the game scoreless, but after a VAR check referee Shaun Evans stuck with his on-field decision and the Frenchman was told c'est la vie.
When Lukas Kelly-Heald went down under a similar feathery touch from Macarthur's Tomislav Uskok in the opposite box, the Nix got the call. The reborn Kosta Barbarouses slotted home the resulting penalty, his first of two goals in the Nix's triumph.
To see the Phoenix getting the calls from the referees goes against all previously understood knowledge.
This is a team that issued a press release last month detailing their complaint to Football Australia following a Tim Payne red card - they even sought further legal advice.
Tim Payne of the Phoenix (L) and Dylan Pierias of the Wanderers compete for the ball during their men's A-League match. Photo: Photosport
Last season, it seemed as though the Phoenix were getting a rough call every other game. That includes the infamous scenes at Allianz Stadium last January, where the nine-man 'Nix saw off Sydney FC, despite two red cards and a pair of stoppage-time penalties to the home side.
Bad luck, poor discipline, anti-New Zealand bias. Plenty of reasons were given but die-hard 'Nix fans always feel the referee might be against them.
Former boss Ufuk Talay stopped bothering to complain about the officials around 2021 when it appeared a pointless endeavour. Current chief Giancarlo Italiano takes a similar approach and maybe it is working. Perhaps the ice is thawing and a new day has sprung where the Phoenix and referees can live in harmony. If so, there is no surer sign that this might be the Phoenix's year. Just don't come after me if they have to pen another sternly worded press release after this weekend's clash with Perth Glory.
In other football news:
The Football Ferns have qualified for the Paris Olympics after winning the OFC Women's Olympic qualifiers in Samoa. To say they cruised to victory would be an understatement. They were chauffeur-driven and sipping cocktails with their feet up, the only blemish being they conceded in an 11-1 final victory over the Solomon Islands. Jitka Klimková's side won the competition with 32 goals scored and just two conceded across five games. Kudos to the Solomons for reaching the final but this hardly helps prepare the Ferns for the Olympic Games, where monumentally tougher opposition awaits.
Wellington Phoenix's women had a day to quickly forget about at table-topping Western United, losing comfortably. They will be pleased the score remained just 3-0, with the home side registering a whopping 24 shots on goal.
Not long now for Aucklanders who are no longer willing to wait for the Nix to come to town to watch live professional football and those interested parties will soon know exactly who they will be rooting for. As reported by Stuff, the as-yet-unnamed Auckland A-League project will announce the name, kit colours and branding next month while as many as seven players have signed on.
In Europe, the Champions League is apparently boring now. A drab showing across the first round of 16 matches will have anyone currently doubling up for a beIN and Sky subscription wanting a refund, but the main talking point was Lazio's 1-0 win over Bayern Munich. The German juggernaut signed Harry Kane, infamous for never winning a trophy, from perennial bottlers Tottenham Hotspur in the summer. Now it seems even the sure-fire guarantee of a Bayern Munich trophy might elude the Englishman.
Bayern Munich's Harry Kane. Photo: INA FASSBENDER
Erling Haaland lost his scoring touch, and his temper, as Manchester City lost ground in the Premier League with a 1-1 draw at home to big-spending but under-achieving Chelsea. Suddenly, after successive thrashings over teams in claret-and-blue, Arsenal look like the team to beat, with wins over West Ham (6-0) and Burnley (5-0). They remain second behind leaders Liverpool, but those bollockings now have the Gunners topping the goal difference charts.