Ishige lifts Phoenix past struggling Mariners in ALM
Japanese import Hideki Ishige proved key as Wellington Phoenix collected a 3-0 win to ensure defending champions Central Coast Mariners continued their winless start to the A-League Men season.
New signing Ishige fired home a highlight-reel long-range strike and set up the second for Kosta Barbarouses before halftime as a clinical Phoenix collected three deserved points at Central Coast Stadium.
It was an impressive bounce-back from the Phoenix following their heartbreaking eleventh-hour defeat against new rivals Auckland FC in the first New Zealand derby.
The first half proved disastrous for the Mariners, who conceded twice as many goals in the opening 45 minutes as they had in the first three outings of the campaign.
The result leaves the Mariners - champions in each of the past two seasons - with three points and just one goal to show from their four matches.
The Mariners named the same side that took the field in the midweek AFC Champions League 2-2 draw against Shanghai Shenhua, but were without key defender Bradley Tapp following his season-ending knee injury suffered last weekend against Perth Glory.
The Mariners were not without their chances, and Vitor Feijao blazed narrowly over early on when he perhaps should have scored.
It proved costly as Ishige crashed home a fierce dipping free kick from well outside the area on the quarter-hour mark for a goal-of-the-season contender.
Barbarouses comfortably finished off a neat counter-attack seven minutes before the break, with Ishige providing a perfect square ball.
The contest was virtually over seven minutes after the break, with left fullback Sam Sutton the unlikely scorer after running straight through the heart of a porous Mariners defence.
Central Coast enjoyed some brighter moments in the second half - this time with a strong wind behind their backs - as coach Mark Jackson brought on a host of youngsters.
New forward Sabit Ngor looked dangerous whenever he was on the ball, and teenager Bailey Brandtman forced several saves from goalkeeper Josh Oluwayemi on an otherwise frustrating match for the Mariners.
"We were very positive from the start, punished them with the chances that we had and gave them very little in terms of openings," Barbarouses said.
"They (the new players) can only get better, which is a bit scary for the other teams and it is just the start for them."
The Phoenix will enter the upcoming international break with a hold on a top-six spot ahead of a massive home encounter against Melbourne Victory.
