Football broke out in the middle of the war of words surrounding Gold Coast United as the embattled A-League team battled mightily before falling 2-0 to Wellington Phoenix on Sunday.

The home win boosted the Phoenix back into third place on the ladder, but given their dominance in the attacking third, the margin should have been bigger.

Recent draws against Melbourne Victory and Central Coast Mariners had marked the youthful Gold Coast side as a team to respect despite their last place on the ladder and the turmoil and uncertainty of the past week.

It wasn’t until late Friday night that the United players knew they would even play the game, when the Queensland Supreme Court dismissed owner Clive Palmer’s application for an injunction after Football Federation Australia revoked his A-League licence.

The match, in front of a crowd of 7431, was crucial for the Phoenix, who have a challenging run into the finals series with matches against the two Melbourne teams and competition leaders Central Coast Mariners.

Wellington managed 14 shots on goal in the opening 45 minutes to Gold Coast’s one, but only captain Andrew Durante’s 28th minute goal separated the two teams at the break.

It took until the 92nd minute for Wellington to secure the win, Nick Ward’s match-sealer coming as Gold Coast threw everything forward in search of a late equaliser.

Gold Coast keeper Jerrad Tyson had to work hard almost from the first whistle. Two excellent reflex saves – including a point-blank block of an early Durante header – kept the Phoenix at bay initially.

The visitors also had their chances, mainly on the counter-attack, Eritrea-born winger Golgol Mebrahtu unleashing a stinging shot which beat Phoenix keeper Mark Paston only to ricochet back off the upright.

Still scoreless as the half-hour mark neared, Wellington finally translated possession into points when Durante, lurking at the far post, bundled Ben Sigmund’s well-directed header into the back of the net.

The feisty young Gold Coast unit worked their scrambling defence hard, and despite an almost continuous barrage, an increasingly frustrated Phoenix struggled to add to their tally.