Brisbane Roar 2-1 Wellington Phoenix
by Alyce Collett (3/4/26)
Above: Brisbane Roar celebrate after Daisy Brown (middle) clinched a late goal to seal a come from behind win for her side. Photo: via A-Leagues.
Brisbane Roar have completed a remarkable come from behind 2-1 win over the Wellington Phoenix in the first leg of their two legged A-League Women’s semi.
Although the Phoenix had the perfect start with a second minute goal from Grace Jale, once Momo Hayashi equalised just over 10 minutes later things the Roar started to wrestle control of the game, and the turnaround was complete with a late go ahead goal from Daisy Brown.
It was a high paced first half, with neither side having overly comfortable control of possession and as such the passing accuracy figure for both sides was hovering close to 50% for much of the half. This was also a sign of the intensity of the action in the first half.
Wellington could not have asked for a better start, when an unmarked Jale rose to head home a perfectly placed Manaia Elliot corner.
Mikayla Woods almost had Wellington’s second less than a minute later, but was not able to convert truly.
Things went from bad to worse for Brisbane in the eighth minute when Ruby Cuthbert was forced from the pitch after picking up what seemed to be a hamstring injury.
However in a positive for Brisbane, it was Bente Jansen who was subbed on in Cuthbert’s place, and she did not take too long to really start to make things happen for Brisbane on an attacking front.
In a continuation of what turned out to be a chaotic opening 15 minutes of the match, Brisbane levelled with a headed in corner of their own after Hayashi ran into the penalty area unmarked and headed home an Alicia Woods corner.
The goal seemed to give the home side a boost in confidence, and as the half progressed the Roar started to have more of the share of time in attacking territory., They did have a few close chances at goal, but ultimately could not make any of them count.
Ultimately the score was level at half time, but there was a sense that anything could happen in the second half.
Brisbane continued to enjoy attacking momentum early in the second half, but some impressive defending from Victoria Esson ensured that the Phoenix did not go behind because of any of the Roar’s chances.
The Phoenix could not even get the ball into their final attacking third as the Roar kept piling on the shots on goal.
The Phoenix needed to change something and that’s what they certainly did, with both Pia Vlok and Lara Wall coming on about halfway through the half to try and spark something for the visitors.
Eventually Brisbane finally found some reward for their relentless attack on goal, after Brown was able to tap the ball home directly in front of goal to give the home side the lead.
Brown’s goal capped off what was a remarkable turnaround for the Roar, and has put them in a prime position to continue their impressive late season run and book their spot in the Grand Final.
Teams: BRISBANE ROAR (3-4-2-1): Lincoln, Beard, Cuthbert, Studer, Seidl, Woods, Hayashi, Medwin, Stephenson, Miller, Brown. Substitutes: Franco, Hanson, Jansen, Kinsella, Meyers, Piazza, Yallop.
Scorers: Hayashi 14’, Brown 72′
WELLINGTON PHOENIX (4-4-2): Esson, Walker, Barry, Van der Meer, Elliott, Nunn, Jale, Anthony, Pijnenburg, Leon, Woods. Substitutes: Bangalon, Brazendale, Feinberg-Danieli, Fraser, Vlok, Jaber, Wall.
Scorers: Jale 2’
Referee: Isabella Mossin.
Attendance: TBC.
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