Keisuke Honda's farewell to Melbourne Victory will last at least another week after the champions prevailed 3-1 over Wellington Phoenix in Friday's first elimination final.
Having announced before the match he will not be returning for a second A-League season, midfielder Honda helped to extend his stay by supplying the free-kick for Georg Niedermeier's headed opener three minutes before half-time at AAMI Park.
The outstanding Ola Toivonen assisted the second for Kosta Barbarouses after the interval and then confirmed Victory's progression to a semi-final away date against Sydney FC, scoring the third seven minutes after Roy Krishna reduced the margin.