Soccer-Corica wants stability after Auckland newcomers maintain perfect A-League start – ThePrint – ReutersFeed

Michael Church
(Reuters) – Auckland coach Steve Corica wants the A-League newcomers to focus on maintaining their impressive early-season form after leading his side to a 2-0 win over Wellington Phoenix on Saturday. the club’s third win in a row on their debut. campaign.

The visitors picked up the points in the first-ever Kiwi Clasico in front of a record crowd of more than 26,000 in Wellington to maintain their perfect start to the A-League season and remain top of the standings after three games.

“I think we may have surprised some people in the first three games, but our job is to continue and for me the main thing is to be consistent.

“There are still a lot of games to go and if we can do this before the end of the season, I will be very happy.”

The game was a meeting between first and second in the nascent league standings after both New Zealand clubs went unbeaten in the first two matches of the season, with Auckland two points clear of Wellington.

That gap has now widened to five points after Jake Brimmer’s late brace sealed the win, ensuring Auckland retained their only perfect record in the league.

The former Melbourne Victory midfielder gave his side the lead in the 89th minute, taking advantage of a mistake by goalkeeper Josh Oluwayemi, who unnecessarily lost possession in the penalty area while trying to play out of defence.

Brimmer added a second six minutes of injury time when Louis Twomey crossed low from close range.

“We’ve brought in some great people who believe in the club and what’s going on in Auckland,” Corica said. “The fans also supported us, which was fantastic.

“Everyone works hard for each other. We already have a very strong bond and we do everything we do together. We just have to keep going and make sure we don’t get too carried away because it’s still very early in the season.

“I can’t ask for more from them in three games, nine points, three clean sheets and a few more good goals.”

Auckland won’t play again until November 24 when they face Macarthur in Sydney, where the club will have a bye week ahead of the international window and Corica is keen to ensure his side don’t lose momentum.

“We need to work hard during this short break. If you take your foot off the pedal now, it will be difficult to go back,” he said. “We want to keep working hard.”

(Reporting by Michael Church; Editing by Michael Perry)

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