Melbourne Heart football coach John Aloisi has urged his side to take on Wellington Phoenix at a derby-like intensity as they search for their first A-League win of the season tomorrow night in Melbourne.
In the battle of the league's cellar dwellers the stakes are much higher for the Heart after Wellington last weekend racked up their first victory of the campaign with a 1-0 win over Sydney FC .
Already three points adrift of second-last Phoenix at the bottom of the table, and 12 shy of a finals spot, the Heart are running out of time to save their season.
Aloisi says the game is a must win for his side and he is confident of victory.
That confidence comes from an effervescent performance in the Melbourne derby last week when the Heart started best but were undone by Patrick Kisnorbo's red card on 20 minutes.
Aloisi says his players were "really upset" after the 3-1 loss to the Victory but backs them to rebound strongly.
The Phoenix are without forward Paul Ifill, who suffered a season-ending achilles injury in last Sunday's win.
Jeremy Brockie is a likely replacement for Ifill as the Phoenix look for their first back-to-back wins in 18 months.
