After the New Zealand-based side's 4-0 loss last night, McGlinchey's Mariners are now four points off sixth placed Wellington with three rounds left.

And they are six points of fifth placed Perth, who they play in the west this weekend in a crucial battle in the context of the final two spots in the play-offs.

Phoenix now must regroup ahead of this weekend's clash in Christchurch against lowly Adelaide United. With only one day back in Wellington before travelling for their 'home' tie, the Nix can feel the Mariners breathing down their necks.  

Central Coast and Phoenix face off at Westpac Stadium in the final round of the regular season on February 12, adding to the tension of the run-in.

Central Coast boss McKinna will speak to his club's hierarchy  about the mooted loan of his Scottish-born New Zealand international in the coming days.

Like many Aussie A-League players, the whiff of a World Cup berth has them on the lookout for short-term loan deals when the A-League finishes in February/March.

But with the Mariners sniffing a play-off berth and the fact that left back Dean Heffernan has signed a loan deal with Huddersfield, this could push the club into holding onto the talented 23-year-old All-White.

"There's no Motherwell deal yet. That's came from over there. Motherwell have inquired about getting him on loan but that's as far as it goes," McKinna told au.fourfourtwo.com today.

"There's nothing at all. The board have to look at our position. The deadline is Monday so the club will decide what's right for the club."

The former teenage representative for Scotland, who was on the books of Celtic until signing last year, pledged his allegiance to the All-Whites ahead of their 2009 World Cup qualification.

 "It's a hard one because you don't want to stand in anyone's way but if we beat Perth this weekend we've got a chance for the finals. So I'm just concentrating on getting into fifth or sixth spot," added McKinna.

For Central Coast, McGlinchey has been in eye-catching form this seasonand created a number of excellent goal-scoring opportunities against Gold Coast United but was let down by his finishing.

However, it's this ability to create chances that McKinna believes his side will need over these next few weeks.

"It's well stated that anyone can go on and win it once they get into the finals. So it's a very hard situation but to be fair to Michael, he's just going about his business," added McKinna.

"He came on, on the weekend, and did very, very well and is a good chance to start this weekend."