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Gordon was yellow-carded later in the second half, but a stricter referee than Kurt Ams may have given him his marching orders much earlier.
Undeterred by the loss of their most creative player, the Phoenix capped off a period of dominance by taking the lead in the 24th minute through David Ball. Clayton Lewis’ corner delivery was flicked on by Graham Dorrans, whose header struck the crossbar and then fell into Ball’s lap at point-blank range.
Reno Piscopo leaves the field after a scything tackle from Ziggy Gordon.Credit:Getty
The hosts rustled up a response just five minutes later through midfielder Keanu Baccus, whose strike from the top of the box found its way into the back of the net through a mess of bodies after a post-corner scramble.
Three minutes before the break, Wellington went ahead again as Tomer Hemed nodded home another corner to score his ninth goal from 12 games.
A seething Robinson told Fox Sports as the second half began that he had just delivered some “home truths” to his players about the quality of their defending, and they responded with an improved performance.
Keanu Baccus of the Wanderers competes with Cameron Devlin for the ball.Credit:Getty
Though they dominated possession and territory for the remainder of the match – aside from an early onslaught from the Phoenix just after half-time – the killer touch in the final third eluded them, with Thomas Aquilina, Ugarkovic and McDonald among those guilty of spurning good chances to equalise.
Some resolute defending from Wellington kept them at bay, and their efforts went right to the wire, highlighted by a last-ditch block from Tim Payne, who stuck his foot out to deny Tate Russell as he looked certain to score from close range in added time.
The Phoenix are now seventh in the A-League and face the two teams either side of them, Perth Glory and Macarthur FC, in the next two weeks.
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