Wellington Phoenix have been hammered 4-0 by Newcastle Jets in their A-League clash at McDonald Jones Stadium.
The NZ side's defensive line was torn to shreds, as the Jets' Georgian striker Beka Mikeltadze netted two goals to send the Phoenix crashing to their heaviest defeat under coach Ufuk Talay, overtaking the 3-0 defeat to the same opponents in 2020.
The Jets dominated possession and dictated the contest from the opening whistle, with the Phoenix managing just four non-threatening shots on target the entire match.
"I think in my entire time at Wellington Phoenix, we haven’t played a bad game like this," says Talay.
"It's a disappointing result, but we got the result we deserved tonight, because I think we were second-best to everything and I don't think we were good, with or without the ball."
Talay hopes the performance serves as a line in the sand for his side.
"I said to the boys after the game, 'at my time here, we haven't played like this, and this is the first and last game we play this way'."
After piling on the pressure in the opening stages, Mikeltadze put the Jets up 1-0 at halftime, guiding home a superb cross from Oliver Boumal.
He had his second goal shortly after the interval, before Dylan Murnane and Brazilian Daniel Penha laid on the finishing touches to complete the rout.
"I think we were OK for the first 20 minutes... but I think once we conceded, the wheels fell off a little bit," Talay adds.
"I don't think we matched them with the intensity and energy they had, and they played through us."
The Phoenix will have a chance to redeem themselves against Sydney FC next Sunday.
The outcome was even worse for Wellington Phoenix women, who crashed to a 5-1 demolition to the Jets.
While Ava Pritchard tapped in late from a corner to score the Phoenix's first-ever goal, the Jets - led by Matildas star Emily van Egmond - had too much firepower, opening the scoring in the 33rd minute and never looking back.
The Phoenix women remain winless in their debut season, after their draw against Western Sydney Wanderers last weekend.
They'll also move on to face Sydney FC next Sunday.
