Chris Greenacre got the winner on 35 minutes, as Wellington claimed just their second away win of the campaign.

The result moved Wellington to 38 points after 28 games, with out-of-form Newcastle Jets the only team who can catch them sitting on 31 points after 27 games.

The Phoenix face Sydney FC away in midweek before a home game against struggling North Queensland but Herbert refused to claim a top six just yet.

"We're not counting our chickens, we've got a couple of tough games to go, away to Sydney on Wednesday then finish off at home," Herbert told Fox Sports.

There is a strong possibility if Wellington do hold onto sixth spot they could face Saturday's opponents Adelaide in the first-round of the finals and Nix keeper Danny Vukovic hinted their victory at Hindmarsh Stadium might provide a psychological boost ahead of such a contest.

"We might even play Adelaide in the first game of the finals, so it's a bit of a psychological win for us. We're close but not all the way there yet," Vukovic said.

Herbert added: "If we do finish sixth and come here, we'll certainly look forward to it."

The Phoenix boss admitted he was delighted with the victory after his side's poor away form this campaign but said it was a sign of recent good form, as they claimed back-to-back wins for the first time this season.

"It's been a tough year, well-documented," he said. "Tonight's a good one, our form has been excellent over the past six or seven weeks and I think we've rounded it off tonight."

There had also been criticism of Wellington's away form on the morning of the game, after an opinion piece by ex-Gisborne player Paul Thompson was published in the Dominion Post on Saturday where he labelled their approach to away fixtures as 'unprofessional'.

The article prompted the club to unusually produce a media release on the day of the game, with skipper Andrew Durante slamming the piece and Herbert backed that stance.

"It's very disappointing. It's not about results," he said. "We've been hammered in the media and quite rightly so for the performances away from home.

"But this club operates extremely professionally. I think it really got to the players when they heard about that and I support that."