Elimination Final vs Glory | Sat 22nd Aug | 7:00pm | SS7

fake fans is a bit harsh to call people who are letting their feelings get the best of them, not everyone can control the red mist when things go wrong.

Hudson Wihongi has made a pretty good case for being a regular going forward. 

Dude throws everything at the ball and has done an awesome jibe of being a nuisance to oppositions when he's on the park. 

God I hope he stays injury free. 

Tough when a team parks the bus after they get in front.... but I think you won more than you think this year... the Nixs got street cred ... started last year but this year made it... huge congrats to those running the club they have turned things around over the last two years...

Good season for your guys... 

Just so demoralising that the last time we won a knockout game was 8 years ago, despite having finished top 4 three times since. Hurts that we can't get it done

Edit: my mind has obviously wiped the memory of us tanking the end of last season and finishing 6th, but the point mostly remains valid 

Fake fans? What a load of crap. Passionate fans expressing their opinions. I am so over some people bitching about people expressing themselves in the heat of the moment, caught up in the passion of the game. What do you want? A bunch of bland yes gender neutral types? I can refer you to place where they exist.

For my 2 cents worth, let's start with my favourite subject - Referees. - Ok, so there were two challenges where the boot of the Perth player was too high and why VAR didn't rule on the one in the penalty area is interesting. Other than that, I felt this referee actually didn't do too bad a job overall. He missed a few things - for both sides and thus showed some consistency. 

Once again, the Nix were all over a team and still not hitting the net. Sotirio being the most guilty with 4 clear chances. But he was not alone. However, credit where it is due - Reddy. That guy is almost always good when it comes to finals and tonight, he played a blinder. Ball must really dislike him after that excellent shot on the turn.

Whilst disappointed with the result, I am so glad not to have lost to some controversial decision or VAR screw up. We lost to a soft goal that was well worked, telegraphed and watched. Other than that, our defence did pretty good really as Forniroli looks like he is finding form again.

I would love to see the club release a season DVD up until the Covid break. Some of those performances were the best I have seen from the Nix. I hope too that the majority of the players are kept. As for a goal scoring striker like Hooper ( Let's be honest, his scoring ratio wasn't bad, his player set ups were great and his little touches were classy for the most part), then look not further than England. a Gazillion players looking for work as clubs are desperate to trim their squads and wage bills due to Covid. I see a chance to get in someone around 28 years old with a proven track record on a good deal. I think wages are going to come down and players realise the great times are not so great anymore and bills need to be paid. 

Thanks Nix for a great season, Thanks Ufuk, the Players, the club and my fellow fans. It was fun when it was good and even when we were losing we never gave up. Roll on season 20/21 or will it be 21/22??

You are assuming I had some on to start with...

Not really a vision i want to wake up to thanks.

Thanks to all at Phoenix for turning our club around, and to all the players who made the sacrifices to keep going this season. You have to have a bit of luck to win the A League, and having to lock down in Australia at the business end of the season is hard yards. We have such a good side, and love the way we play. 

Perth setup well against us after the early goal, and that's what can happen in finals footy.

Hope Liberato Cacace settles well in Europe - his contribution here was huge and we'll miss him - but it's good to see early signs of what Callan Elliot might be capable of.

      .

Perhaps this Thomas James guy is worth a Nix trial. 

Though how all that sort of stuff is going to be organised over next few months with closed borders, is going to be interesting.

Any of the Nix coaching staff, staying on in Aussie I wonder

https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/football/a-league/122535204/aleague-perth-glory-coach-refuses-to-hit-back-at-nepotism-claim-after-phoenix-win

Disappointing result but probably not that surprising in light of our post-Covid form. I think we can't underestimate the toll on the players of being away from home and families and in another country in the midst of a global pandemic. Add to that the uncertainty over whether the team will have to be based in Aus for some or all of next season (and possibly the halving of the salary cap) and it's easy to see why the players' heads didn't quite seem to be in the game these last few weeks.

I'm going to remember this season for the brilliant run until the lockdown where we played some of the best football in the league, and probably the best football the Nix have ever played too. Really hope we can keep as much of the team together as possible and rally for next season, which, fingers crossed, will see football back at the Cake Tin.

I fully agree.

We were in great form before the league called a halt in March and a run of form like that is hard to maintain over a whole season in the best of times what to speak of a once-in-a-century pandemic disruption.

We weren't the same when the league resumed which perhaps isn't surprising given the four month break (as long as an off-season in a normal year) which meant that the resumed league post July was like a new season.

Having to play all your remaining games in a foreign country in an austere lockdown environment was harder for the Nix than the Aussie teams too.

What needs to be mentioned too is that Ufuk Talay has done a very good job despite being a vastly inexperienced coach.

Lets remember that this has been his first season in charge of a fully professional side (or any club side).

Apart from a brief spell in 2012 after he finished playing and last season as an assistant at Sydney FC, Talay had no previous club coaching experience at any level, not even state league. Whereas Rudan had coached in the NSW Premier League for six seasons before taking the Nix job.

Talay had mainly only been involved in youth coaching at the AIS and national age group sides which is a very different thing to senior club coaching.  

This is what I find the most gutting thing about it. It should have been so different . They deserved to do it differently.

Agree if we had the game at home we would have won.

We played well but maybe we need to sacrifice a little bit of control in midfield for more bodies up front, or a different type of player up there.  Overall I thought our biggest issue was the movement up front - Sautirio is quick but he doesn't link the play.  Crowd out Ball and Davila and we do seem to run out of ideas.

What the fudge are you talking about?

Look in the drawer labelled "VAR".

Very proud of our team. Super effort, sustained over weeks. Tremendous performance and no luck whatsoever. Lots of risk around the next season for the Chair and Domey to manage (if they can). Thank you gentlemen for your exceptional efforts for the team and the fans this season.

The comment earlier having a dig at what people type on here. read the thread, you will find it.

From Graze Anatomy

Hello!
Analysis of the first elimination final Wellington Phoenix v Perth Glory is up! Looking at:
- Popovic's surprise selections
- Perth deep defence
- Chianese's goal
- Wellington's attack

https://www.aleagueapart.com/match-analysis/aleague-elimination-final-wellington-phoenix-perth-glory-popovic-tactics

Talking about the gender slur mate, you’re clearly using gender neutral in a derogatory manner and it’s not on at all. The Yellow Fever is an inclusive and accepting fan group and I think I can speak for all of us when I say that any derogatory speech towards LGBTQI+ has no place here.

How the hell you managed to make something out of nothing is brilliant. Please apply for the forwards position for next season. Creating things is required.

FFS give me back the good ole bag em and slag em days of the early days of YF. Any wonder so many no longer take part in the forums.

"I liked it better when no one called me out on being a cod"

I’m still waiting for my best mate Junior to come back

maybe but he packed his bags for Hudson and America 

So he has form

All players who came back to Wgtn are locked down in isolation on The Terrace. 45' exercise twice a day. Rest 0f the time is in their room.

Poor Lads after a greast Season!

bet they'll do it without complaint too or any breaches too.

wishing them well and saying thanx.

A vigil from the street with a big banner that says "Thanks Nix" - Do you think they would appreciate it?

http://theniche-cache.com/football/2020/8/27/welly-nix-2019-20-season-awards

SHE fell over

Fixed.

Really hope your joking hard to tell with anyone these days. If your not sad day.