21 Oct 2013

Phoenix grab a draw

11:19 am on 21 October 2013

The Phoenix may have proven a few doubters wrong after last season's wooden spooners held reigning A-League football premiers Western Sydney to a 1-1 draw in Parramatta.

German Jerome Polenz put the home side in front after 15 minutes, but the Phoenix, who opened with a 2-1 loss to Brisbane last week, produced a blistering second half with a flurry of shots resulting in Jeremy Brockie's 60th minute equaliser.

Key substitutions from Phoenix coach Ernie Merrick changed the complexion of the game.

His call to bring on Jason Hicks for Stein Huysegems midway through the opening half added spark and steadied the midfield for Wellington while Paul Ifill, who came on in the second stanza, was a constant menace for the Wanderers defence.

Merrick says they were getting beaten in the midfield and he needed to make a change there.

Meanwhile skipper Andrew Durante, who along with keeper Glenn Moss, Leo Bertos and Brockie, made his return from international duty, was pleased to have silenced the critics.

Durante says no-one was backing them to get anything from the game, they have a lot to prove this year so this is a good performance.