Both teams lacked fluency in a game that in truth was low on quality with possession turned over cheaply by both sides throughout the match.

Roar couldn’t have made a better start though with Brazilian striker Reinaldo registering his fifth goal of the season after just five minutes.

The breakthrough was a beautifully engineered move with Robbie Kruse streaking down the right hand side before slipping a neat pass inside to the on-rushing Massimo Murdocca.

The diminutive midfielder kept the ball moving with a first-time ball to Reinaldo who had the space and time to take to take a touch before sliding it under Glen Moss in the Phoenix goal.

Queensland looked comfortable but chances were few and far between.

Murdocca stung the palms of Moss on 18 minutes and Wellington’s Vince Lia tried to catch Liam Reddy off his line before the home side finally scored a 25th minute equaliser.

Craig Moore slipped and Kiwi striker Shane Smeltz pounced on the loose ball before heading dangerously into the box.

Faced with an acute angle and the substantial frame of Sasa Ognenovski, Smeltz steadied himself then fired high into the net, giving Reddy little chance.

The goal visibly lifted the home side and although the play was scrappy they heaped the pressure on Frank Farina’s men for the remainder of the half.

Phoenix almost hit the front right on the half-time whistle, but Andrew Packer saved the day with a last-ditch tackle to deny the ever dangerous Smeltz.

The second half was played in much the same vein with neither side able to fashion a winner, although Wellington enjoyed the bulk of the possession.

Faced with some threatening set pieces, the Roar rearguard stood firm but were jolted by the loss of skipper Craig Moore through injury in the 72nd minute, with the former Socceroo captain replaced by the ever reliable Josh McCloughan.

With the clock ticking down it was all hands to the pump for Roar as they dug in for a point.

Warhorse Stuart McLaren soldiered on despite a nasty looking ankle roll and finished the game as a makeshift striker with Reinaldo dropping deeper to fill in the gaps.

The best chance of the half fell to Wellington’s Vaughan Coveny with 20 minutes remaining but after springing the Roar’s offside trap he fluffed the opportunity with Moore applying pressure.

Indecision in the Queensland defence almost caused a calamity right at the end, but Roar held firm and will almost certainly look back on the game as one in which they gained a point after a determined performance in difficult circumstances.

The draw lifts Roar to 27 points and edges Frank Farina’s men closer to 30-point mark, the total that many believe to be the magic number to qualify for the A-League finals.