Coopers Stadium on a Friday night always seems to deliver action-packed drama and it was no different when Adelaide United and Wellington Phoenix exchanged blows in a thrilling four-goal first half.
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Adelaide, in pursuit of a spot in the top six, raced to a two-goal lead in their final home game of the season as Panagiotis Kikianis and Stefan Mauk both found the back of the net by the 12-minute mark in the second game of Round 27.
The Reds had several chances to add to their early 2-0 advantage before the half-hour mark; Mauk hit the woodwork and Dylan Pierias threatened on multiple occasions but the lead remained at two, opening the door for Wellington to answer back with two goals in a four-minute blitz.
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The Phoenix hadn’t mustered a single shot through 30 minutes but scored with their first two shots of the night as Kosta Barbarouses and Isaac Hughes hauled the visitors back into the contest.
The Reds came into the game with the second-worst defensive record in the league.
Stung on multiple occasions throughout the 2024-25 season by their frailty at the back, their path to a straightforward win and back into the top six was once again impacted by a leaky defensive performance as Network 10 commentary team Simon Hill and Daniel McBreen expressed their perplexion at what they’d seen in a four-goal first half at Coopers Stadium.
“It’s 2-2!” Said Hill. “Wow. This is quite extraordinary.
“Isaac Hughes applying the finishing touch, and after a dominant opening half an hour for Adelaide United in which they might’ve scored four or five goals, we’re back at 2-2. Crazy, crazy stuff.”
“Unbelievable,” McBreen replied. “As we said earlier, it seemed like this could be a blowout. Two shots, two goals, two-all!”
