WELL, that was disappointing. Even after a slow start, I thought Phoenix created enough chances to at least earn a share of the points.

In fact, opportunities don’t come any more gilt-edged than the one Leo Bertos spooned over in injury time.

The first half reminded me a lot of the first half against Sydney FC at home three weeks ago. Queensland dominated, and in Massimo Murdocca and Matt McKay they have two “energiser bunnies” – players who buzz around and always look capable of setting something up, while still contributing defensively. These two basically allow Charlie Miller to have a free role behind the front two.

The two players charged with the same responsibility for Phoenix were Adam Kwasnik and Leilei Gao. Kwasnik has been disappointing since his arrival from Central Coast; he contributed little again today and was unsurprisingly substituted at half-time, while LeiLei Gao was completely anonymous in the first half. Something must have been said at half-time because he certainly offered a lot more in the second period.

I still think it must be hard for Ricki Herbert to communicate complicated (or even basic) tactical instructions to Gao because his English is pretty much non-existent.

He also strikes me as a touch petulant – his body language is often that of a man who’s in this game for himself rather than for his team. While Ben Sigmund would fight off an opposing army single-handedly so his fellow soldiers could escape the trenches unhurt, you get the feeling Gao would run for the hills at the first opportunity.

It’s a shame really because at his best, he’s one of the best dribblers in the league, running at pace with the ball, almost always beating the first man and presenting a danger in the attacking third.

Bertos’s injection into the game at half-time was the catalyst for a far better second half performance and he must start in place of Kwasnik next weekend against his old side, Perth Glory. He immediately ran at the Roar defenders, got to the bye-line and injected much needed impetus into the offensive effort.

The one obvious black mark on Leo’s game was the dreadful miss when he was one-on-one with Liam Reddy. I’ve watched this several times on replay. Bertos is certainly onside when the ball is played through, so there’s no problem there.

He then takes four touches – the first to control it on his chest, the second to push it ahead and into the penalty area, while the fourth is the shot at goal.

It’s the third touch that is his undoing – just a little touch which gave the Queensland defender time to make a final desperate lunge and for Bertos to be caught in two minds about where to place the ball.

It was the touch of a man who’s scored just one goal in 39 A-League matches and that off his shin from four yards out. Leo Bertos doesn’t just have a monkey on his back – he’s got the star of King Kong weighing him down when it comes to scoring goals.

Apart from Bertos, Sigmund was excellent again – he was my MOM; in fact defensively there weren’t too many issues. It’s the creation (and finishing) of chances and the slow start which will be top of Herbert’s mind as they head off on the mammoth flight to Perth.

Jason Pine is the radio commentator for Wellington Phoenix home matches.