Wanderers' heart wins Aloisi praise Happy Wanderers: Western Sydney players celebrate a goal in their 3-1 win over Melbourne Heart. If anyone in Australian soccer knows about mental strength and the psychological toughness needed in critical moments, it should be John Aloisi. After all, the Melbourne Heart coach showed no hesitation in taking the most critical penalty in Australian soccer history when he stepped forward to convert the final spot kick in the shootout against Uruguay in Sydney more than seven years ago, scoring the goal that finally took Australia to the World Cup after a 32-year absence. So when Aloisi talks in glowing terms about the mental strength of an opposing team - in this case Western Sydney Wanderers - he is worth listening to. Tony Popovic, who played with Aloisi at the 2006 World Cup, was a tough-tackling centre-back and he has fashioned a team in his image. But the Wanderers, who all but ended Heart's finals hopes with a 3-1 win on Saturday evening at AAMI Park, also have sufficient attacking flair and invention from players such as Shinji Ono (an absentee on Saturday), Youssouf Hersi, Aaron Mooy and Mark Bridge, to trouble anyone, as they have shown by winning 10 consecutive matches. That winning run has established a new A-League benchmark and means they will go into next weekend's derby with Sydney FC in buoyant mood. As Aloisi says, it's hardly surprising. When your confidence is high and players believe they will win a game, even when they are not dominating, they can, and that's what's happening with Western Sydney at the moment. They have gone on a great run and they believe they will get a result no matter how they are playing. When things are going your way players believe a little bit more, and that was the difference [against Heart]. They are very solid, they are hard to break down, they win a lot of second balls and they are focused throughout the whole game, no matter how the game is going. Whether they are getting dominated or the opposition have more possession, they don't lose their shape. They enjoy defending. I suppose that rubs off from their coach, and they have players up high who can cause problems. While mathematically Heart remains a finals possibility, the reality is that the football department might be better advised working on new signings for next season and working out which, if any, of their veterans will be offered new deals for 2013-14. Melbourne Victory, which shared the spoils in a pulsating 1-1 draw with Sydney FC on Saturday night, will play finals and whether it finishes third or fourth is immaterial as it will be involved in the first finals game on Friday, April 5, at AAMI Park. But its opponent is still up in the air, as Victory is unlikely to know which team will finish fifth or sixth - or indeed whether it finishes third or fourth - until the final round of the season. Sydney's point keeps it in the frame for one of the two finals positions still up for grabs, although Brisbane and Perth are making a late charge. Newcastle has played a game more than everyone else and only has one match left. Victory is in third spot with 41 points, one more than Adelaide, which drew with the Jets on Friday night. It entertains Perth Glory on Saturday in a game that many might see as a home banker, although international call-ups might make it a closer affair than some are expecting. Ange Postecoglou's side will be without Archie Thompson and Mark Milligan, who are away on international duty with the Socceroos, and Marco Rojas, who is with the New Zealand national team for its Oceania region World Cup qualifier. Glory will also have to do without one of its key men, striker Shane Smeltz, who will be with Rojas in Dunedin for the game against New Caledonia. The pair then travel to Honiara for the match with the Solomon Islands on March 26.