Wellington return home full of confidence after claiming back-to-back wins on the road for the first time in the club’s five-year history, as they prepare to take on the heart at Westpac Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The Phoenix followed-up their Round 15 win over Gold Coast at Skilled Park with an upset 1-0 win over Newcastle last Friday night, thanks to a second-half strike to defender Manny Muscat, which was his first ever goal in the A-League. Ricki Herbert’s side have now shot to third on the ladder with 27 points and appear almost certain to take part in their third consecutive finals series. Muscat will miss the match, having been granted leave on personal grounds, while attacking midfielder Nick Ward is rated a 50-50 chance.
The Heart are a point behind the Phoenix in fourth place, with their season seemingly stalling after they have picked up just two competition points from their past five encounters, including last weekend’s 1-1 draw at home to Brisbane. Midfielder Wayne Srhoj is a strong chance to return from a month-long quad injury, while mid-season signing Paul Reid could make his debut for the club after spending the past two weekends playing as an over-age player in the National Youth League.
Tip - Back the Melbourne Heart/Draw option in the HT/FT Double, which – at $15.00 even – is good value in this one.
Place bets by: January 29, 2012 02:35pm CST
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| Wellington / Wellington | $2.9 |
| Draw / Wellington | $5 |
| Draw / Draw | $5.25 |
| Melbourne Heart / Melbourne Heart | $6 |
| Draw / Melbourne Heart | $8 |
| Wellington / Draw | $15 |
| Melbourne Heart / Draw | $15 |
| Melbourne Heart / Wellington | $26 |
| Wellington / Melbourne Heart | $41 |
| VIEW ODDS |