When I arrived the wind got up to the point the camera operator was holding on for dear life attempting to stop the gazebo cover from blowing away. God knows how he wasn’t blown off the scaffolding. First 20 minutes of the game had strong winds plus heavy rain.Marto
kwlap
weather might suit us. especially with the strong wind.
I'm not sure that there is actually much wind there. Just useless Aussie commentators talking complete bollox again.
On the new faces...I like the look of Loke. Skilful, creative, sharp and confident. Links well, and was decent on defence too. High work rate and was always there for the press. Loke at RB and Payne at CB becomes an option, if you put the team before Payne's world cup prospects. GSR and Supyk again didn't impress. Subbing LBS for Supyk changed the game. It wasn't a defensive move, as the comms oddly claimed. LBS was strong defensively as well as dominant on the ball, and his removal weakened the defense and the attack. Perth took charge from that point. Conchie again was ok; still not convinced he's A league standard yet. LKH, as well as scoring twice, had a good game but was very tired at the end and IMO should've been subbed for Lee. Oluwayemi made some important saves. Great shot stopper, but error prone. Overall, a very promising performance especially after a long trip. Nix were the better side.
Two weekends in a row now the youngsters, academy/CL players have got the job done, first having to battle some very experienced heads, and torrential rain last night. Three of the penalty takers were in that 2nd half team against Wrexham.
Back-to-back positivity, feels so good. Auckland losing tomorrow night would make it even sweeter.
Hope we get to see a bit more of Loke during the season proper. (Although not at the expensive of a relatively injury free starting line up) Feel like he's been knocking on the door for a while now.
And most importantly another game to look forward too throughout the long dull achingly slow off season!
On the new faces...I like the look of Loke. Skilful, creative, sharp and confident. Links well, and was decent on defence too. High work rate and was always there for the press. Loke at RB and Payne at CB becomes an option, if you put the team before Payne's world cup prospects. GSR and Supyk again didn't impress. Subbing LBS for Supyk changed the game. It wasn't a defensive move, as the comms oddly claimed. LBS was strong defensively as well as dominant on the ball, and his removal weakened the defense and the attack. Perth took charge from that point. Conchie again was ok; still not convinced he's A league standard yet. LKH, as well as scoring twice, had a good game but was very tired at the end and IMO should've been subbed for Lee. Oluwayemi made some important saves. Great shot stopper, but error prone. Overall, a very promising performance especially after a long trip. Nix were the better side.
I thought that, late in the game, when Brooke-Smith was subbed off, we effectively lost our most creative playmaker. I do not know enough of Supyk first-hand, but have not seen anything from him against Perth that merits the accolades. Maybe Brooke-Smith is simply that good. At the same time Perth brought on Kaitak and Taggart. I admit I rated our chances low at that point, except I hoped there was not enough time for Perth to win it in regular time. But, this time, Mother Fortune decided she wanted to give us the full value for our money, and pushed us all the way to the penalties for our sins. And yet, we won, away, to a Perth team with shades of Phoenix B, with Sail, Wooten and Sutton on the field, Adam Griffiths on the sidelines, and Pennington still one one of better past players (even if not on the field). Maybe Perth wasn't ready for the season yet? They smashed us in Wellington just two months ago. Or maybe we are doing something right, early on.
Actually, getting outplayed quite a bit these days
Typical pre-season FFA cup game for us. If I was a Perth fan I'd be a little worried, all those "top" players bought in and they still struggled against us. Kaltak and Wootten should make a solid CB pairing for them in time but it'll be slow. Sutton and Risdon are always a risk of a yellow card or two as well.
Pleased we got the win, the team will be better for it. Retre really needs to step his effort up this season, he's likely to be a bench player but he offers no impact at the moment.
Candy offered more than Supyk and scored his penalty. I'm hoping Supyk steps up but at this stage and from last season, I am still wondering why they rate him as high as they do - Fans, that is. I want him to prove me wrong and for him to bannish the ghosts of Kosta & Zawada.
Proud to have attended the first 175 Consecutive "Home" Wellington Phoenix "A League" Games !!
Candy offered more than Supyk and scored his penalty. I'm hoping Supyk steps up but at this stage and from last season, I am still wondering why they rate him as high as they do - Fans, that is. I want him to prove me wrong and for him to bannish the ghosts of Kosta & Zawada.
Supyk seems to make decent enough runs, but his end product is yet to prove effective
Not the greatest game but at least we won and that's all you can really ask for. I do find it a little concerning that Josh didn't save a single pen and was instead saved by players skying it. Tbf Sail didn't save anything either so maybe the conditions were genuinely that bad but still, would've liked to see him stop one
Am I missing something with this talk of a derby? I thought the deal with the Australia Cup is that all the games had to be in Australia, so Nix v AFC would have to be in freakin' Canberra or somewhere?
Ramming liberal dribble down your throat since 2009 This forum needs less angst and more Kate Bush threads
Am I missing something with this talk of a derby? I thought the deal with the Australia Cup is that all the games had to be in Australia, so Nix v AFC would have to be in freakin' Canberra or somewhere?
If we were to draw AFC, the match will be played at the home of the team drawn first, so either way a potential first ever AC match in NZ.
On the new faces...I like the look of Loke. Skilful, creative, sharp and confident. Links well, and was decent on defence too. High work rate and was always there for the press. Loke at RB and Payne at CB becomes an option, if you put the team before Payne's world cup prospects. GSR and Supyk again didn't impress. Subbing LBS for Supyk changed the game. It wasn't a defensive move, as the comms oddly claimed. LBS was strong defensively as well as dominant on the ball, and his removal weakened the defense and the attack. Perth took charge from that point. Conchie again was ok; still not convinced he's A league standard yet. LKH, as well as scoring twice, had a good game but was very tired at the end and IMO should've been subbed for Lee. Oluwayemi made some important saves. Great shot stopper, but error prone. Overall, a very promising performance especially after a long trip. Nix were the better side.
Conchie should have done better on the goal we conceded. He was marking Taggart and was nicely goal side to start with, but didn't stay goal side, he just drifted off into no mans land and left Taggart totally free.
On the new faces...I like the look of Loke. Skilful, creative, sharp and confident. Links well, and was decent on defence too. High work rate and was always there for the press. Loke at RB and Payne at CB becomes an option, if you put the team before Payne's world cup prospects. GSR and Supyk again didn't impress. Subbing LBS for Supyk changed the game. It wasn't a defensive move, as the comms oddly claimed. LBS was strong defensively as well as dominant on the ball, and his removal weakened the defense and the attack. Perth took charge from that point. Conchie again was ok; still not convinced he's A league standard yet. LKH, as well as scoring twice, had a good game but was very tired at the end and IMO should've been subbed for Lee. Oluwayemi made some important saves. Great shot stopper, but error prone. Overall, a very promising performance especially after a long trip. Nix were the better side.
LBS definitely overshadowed GSR because most of the play was going down his side in the first half, but in the second half he came into the game more and should've of got an assist when he made a good break and did a great low cross to Ishige who couldn't finish it. He also played well in the previous FFA cup round, so I expect him to be a decent option off the bench this season.
Tough on Conchie, shots are coming in towards goal, he's looking to block space for the shot to come through. No way you anticipate the ricochet.
Supyk comments a little harsh too IMO. The way we play he is almost always isolated and feeding off scraps. Even Kosta struggled hugely at times last year. The system is not made for strikers. Would like to see him play with someone beside him, or with actual wingers and an AM up high. He's too isolated.
Tough on Conchie, shots are coming in towards goal, he's looking to block space for the shot to come through. No way you anticipate the ricochet.
Supyk comments a little harsh too IMO. The way we play he is almost always isolated and feeding off scraps. Even Kosta struggled hugely at times last year. The system is not made for strikers. Would like to see him play with someone beside him, or with actual wingers and an AM up high. He's too isolated.
and yet Kosta scored at will. shows the difference in quality between the two
Tough on Conchie, shots are coming in towards goal, he's looking to block space for the shot to come through. No way you anticipate the ricochet.
Supyk comments a little harsh too IMO. The way we play he is almost always isolated and feeding off scraps. Even Kosta struggled hugely at times last year. The system is not made for strikers. Would like to see him play with someone beside him, or with actual wingers and an AM up high. He's too isolated.
and yet Kosta scored at will. shows the difference in quality between the two
Nah disagree with that. Kosta cut a pretty frustrated figure at times with the lack of service. Decent buildup with good delivery would have netted him far more goals. System was a big problem for him
Uh oh. Between the Wrexham game and this game I'm starting to feel a bit of cautious optimism for the season ahead...
Great result considering no Rufer, Payne, Armiento, Eze, and we still have another import spot to fill. Some of the younger players have looked like they benefitted from the minutes from the last campaign (Hughes, LKH).
LBS is a joy to watch and hope he starts more often than not. I've heard a lot about GSR over the past couple of seasons but don't have the same level of excitement about him than I do LBS at this point.
Oluwayemi made a few really impressive reflex saves. Still, two games in a row he's a bit lucky to not concede an embarrassing goal on his behalf. He's an above average shot-stopper for A-League, but he's error prone, not great at commanding the air, and his distribution needs improvement. If he can show progress in these areas for the season ahead he'll be alright.
Candy offered more than Supyk and scored his penalty. I'm hoping Supyk steps up but at this stage and from last season, I am still wondering why they rate him as high as they do - Fans, that is. I want him to prove me wrong and for him to bannish the ghosts of Kosta & Zawada.
Its not just the fans though some senior members of the team from the last couple of seasons also rate him very highly. Admit he hasnt really shown it so far hopefully we get to see what they see.
Re the Oluwayemi incident: that nearly embarrassing goal came from an injudicious header back from a defender, though, didn't it? Without the header, he collects that no drama at all.
Not saying he's not prone to the odd howler, but I'm really not sure that was one (assuming he gave his defender a shout)...
For proper embarrassing how about Adam Taggart blasting into Row Z with the goal, and the tie, at his mercy?
Not the greatest game but at least we won and that's all you can really ask for. I do find it a little concerning that Josh didn't save a single pen and was instead saved by players skying it. Tbf Sail didn't save anything either so maybe the conditions were genuinely that bad but still, would've liked to see him stop one
I'd back Josh to save penalties in normal circumstances. He's very athletic and has great reactions.
Re the Oluwayemi incident: that nearly embarrassing goal came from an injudicious header back from a defender, though, didn't it? Without the header, he collects that no drama at all.
Not saying he's not prone to the odd howler, but I'm really not sure that was one (assuming he gave his defender a shout)...
For proper embarrassing how about Adam Taggart blasting into Row Z with the goal, and the tie, at his mercy?
Josh was motioning that he'd called for the ball. It was a miscommunication, rather than a mistake.
Shout out to Candy, subbed on with 30 seconds left and given the 5th penalty to take - you'd have to assume he's subbed on specifically for that reason given he replaced the RB.
Tough on Conchie, shots are coming in towards goal, he's looking to block space for the shot to come through. No way you anticipate the ricochet.
Supyk comments a little harsh too IMO. The way we play he is almost always isolated and feeding off scraps. Even Kosta struggled hugely at times last year. The system is not made for strikers. Would like to see him play with someone beside him, or with actual wingers and an AM up high. He's too isolated.
and yet Kosta scored at will. shows the difference in quality between the two
Kosta had a tough end to last season. He still relied on service. I see Ishige’s passing as a bigger asset than his goal scoring and I’d love to see him as a deeper, more central playmaker, where we would get more return on that passing.
And yeh, after such a mind numbing end to the season it’s great to see us have some pre-season games, have a great crowd and for us to get a couple of nice results, even if our attacking performances weren’t that much to write home about.
Tough on Conchie, shots are coming in towards goal, he's looking to block space for the shot to come through. No way you anticipate the ricochet.
Supyk comments a little harsh too IMO. The way we play he is almost always isolated and feeding off scraps. Even Kosta struggled hugely at times last year. The system is not made for strikers. Would like to see him play with someone beside him, or with actual wingers and an AM up high. He's too isolated.
and yet Kosta scored at will. shows the difference in quality between the two
Kosta had a tough end to last season. He still relied on service. I see Ishige’s passing as a bigger asset than his goal scoring and I’d love to see him as a deeper, more central playmaker, where we would get more return on that passing.
martinb
theprof
MetalLegNZ
Tough on Conchie, shots are coming in towards goal, he's looking to block space for the shot to come through. No way you anticipate the ricochet.
Supyk comments a little harsh too IMO. The way we play he is almost always isolated and feeding off scraps. Even Kosta struggled hugely at times last year. The system is not made for strikers. Would like to see him play with someone beside him, or with actual wingers and an AM up high. He's too isolated.
and yet Kosta scored at will. shows the difference in quality between the two
Kosta had a tough end to last season. He still relied on service. I see Ishige’s passing as a bigger asset than his goal scoring and I’d love to see him as a deeper, more central playmaker, where we would get more return on that passing.
I agree with MartinB on the potential for Ishige to use his passing skills more. However, it remains to be seen this season whether both him and Nagasawa, and some of the less bulky young new players, can cope with the physicality of the A-League. Some were pushed off the ball against Perth, shoulder to shoulder, which would make for a difficult viewing if it happened in every game.
Actually, getting outplayed quite a bit these days
Nagasawa seemed to be much more involved, but this is about the highest level he will dominate a midfield. He won’t dominate against the top 5 imo.
The physicality and the refs phobia of giving Ishige pens, and his mixed finishing were something we learned last season. Are we doing the same thing and expecting different answers or will the new players sort it out?
Feel we’d ideally like a top quality defender and a top quality midfielder and we’ve only got one visa slot.
Did anyone else hear Ben Homer mention that the digital board for subs/added time apparently got damaged by the rain and broke before the match? Ha ha.
Did anyone else hear Ben Homer mention that the digital board for subs/added time apparently got damaged by the rain and broke before the match? Ha ha.
The screen at the ground also started running a windows update at the start of the second half and then was stuck on 00:00 for the rest of the game
The gritty performance that the boys put in last night in Perth is evidence of not only a definite and welcome shift in tactics, but also the overall fitness level of the squad as a whole.
I recall that the Wrexham coach commented to one of the Phoenix coaching team after the game last weekend when the fitness metrics of the Phoenix squad was discussed how impressed he was with their level.
This showed through last night in the first 90 minutes, but also the enforced 30-40 minute delay due to the lightning, the ET and then the penalty shootout. Their strength and conditioning was one of the crucial factors that got them through with a result.
By contrast I recall last year in about the 4th or 5th round last season commenting on the forum, how slow the team was to change pace and transition forward and it showed especially in the last 20 minutes in many of those forgettable games.
Props to the coaching staff for doing something about it in this preseason.
I’m sure it will stand them in good stead for the rest of the season, if it can be maintained.
I'll also add to those who weren't real impressed with Retre; he was 'warming up' right in front of where I was standing and he could not have looked less interested in being there if he tried.
I'll also add to those who weren't real impressed with Retre; he was 'warming up' right in front of where I was standing and he could not have looked less interested in being there if he tried.
'Collecting a pay cheque'? Gotta pay for that Insta worthy apparently glamour wedding, somehow.
Very early days, but he's under pressure to get fit and perform. Otherwise he might be the next player to suffer from Chiefy's cold shoulder and early mutual release exit.
I'll also add to those who weren't real impressed with Retre; he was 'warming up' right in front of where I was standing and he could not have looked less interested in being there if he tried.
'Collecting a pay cheque'. Gotta pay for that Insta worthy apparently glamour wedding, somehow.
Very early days, but he's under pressure to get fit and perform. Otherwise he might be the next player to suffer from Chiefy's cold shoulder and early mutual release exit.
Should never have let Pennington go. He’s a far better player than Retre in 2025 and would be approaching citizenship if he wanted to pull a Durante.