Ben Old was the goal scorer for the Phoenix. Photo: Masanori Udagawa
The Wellington Phoenix men extended their unbeaten streak to six games as they soared to the top of the A-League in beating Western United 1-0 in Ballarat.
Ben Old's strike off a surging run forward in the 79th minute broke the deadlock as the Wellington side secured their fourth win from six matches to start the new season.
In another milestone, Wellington claimed their first win of their 2023-24 campaign on Australian soil after draws at Western Sydney and Melbourne Victory in their previous two trips across the Tasman.
The Phoenix found the breakthrough when Old started and finished a sweeping counter-attack. The creative midfielder burst out of Wellington's half and found Kosta Barbarouses who delivered an inch-perfect return pass for Old, who swept a first-time finish past Heward-Belle.
The goal was initially ruled out for offside, but the decision was overturned following intervention from the video assistant referee.
The two combined again nine minutes later but this time Old dragged his left-footed shot wide of target.
Wellington defended their lead well with keeper Alex Paulsen confident in goal as he pulled off a handful of clutch saves throughout the match.
Paulsen though was not required to make any saves of note for the remainder of the 90 minutes and stoppage time. Western substitute Nikita Rukavytsya came closest to equalising when he skimmed the top of the Phoenix crossbar with a blistering shot in the 90th minute.
Phoenix linchpin Oskar Zawada made a successful return from injury after missing the side's last game, coming on as a substitute in the second half.
Wellington host the Newcastle Jets at Sky Stadium next Saturday.
