Huawei Wellington United Phoenix Academy Football School of Excellence - WeeNix

Wow, f**king YES!!!!! I can go, yay  I'm sure I read it was Thursday at 7:30 somewhere.. Yayurr, cheers for that brill news, mate!

exams?

By Bob Pearce / asbpremiership.co.nz 

All Whites defender Tony Lochhead is likely to continue his battle back to full fitness with the Phoenix A team in the ASB Challenge game against Waitakere United at Fred Taylor Park at 6pm on Wednesday.

The left back, a key player in the Wellington team's march to the A-League playoffs last season, started the first seven games this season before succumbing to a long-standing groin injury.

Phoenix A, combining fringe Phoenix players with up-and-coming youngsters, play each of the ASB Premiership franchises. So far they have yet to earn a win, losing 3-0 to cellar-dwellers YoungHeart Manawatu last week.

But coach Jonathan Gould is not disheartened by the results, emphasising the pluses from the new concept.

"It's not about the results. It's what we take out of each game. To have a Phoenix A side plus academy players who go down to Wellington to train in a professional environment is great."

Gould can point to two young players not available to him, Marco Rojas and James Musa, because they have graduated to the top team.

He expects to field many of the players who played in Palmerston North, which means northern fans will get a chance to rate goalkeeper Reece Crowther, Diego Walsh and Mirjan Pavlovic. They will also see two of their own youngsters, Sean Lovemore and Ashton Pett, in the Phoenix lineup.

Waitakere coach Neil Emblen, relieved that the game has been moved forward to allow more recovery time before the key Premiership against Canterbury in Christchurch on Sunday, has a squad keen to show the Phoenix what they can do.

"All the boys want to play because a good chunk of the team aspire to play for the Phoenix and that's not just the young boys, even the senior guys would relish the chance.

"Roy Krishna has had a couple of chances to play professionally but hasn't quite made it and he's eager to play and show what he can do."

Emblen has been fielding a young team in the premiership, partly because of injuries but also on merit. He loses Lovemore and Pett but regains Zane Sole. Tim Payne has under-17 commitments and Ryan de Vries is in South Africa.

The longer-term absentees include Martin Bullock, Jason Rowley and Neil Sykes but Emblen himself is threatening to strap on his boots to keep a check on his two youngsters guesting for the Phoenix A.

Last team the Phoenix came north they thrashed a Waitakere side preparing for the Club World Cup. Emblen didn't play that day and this time as coach he will be hoping for a much better result.

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Its so awesome that we can finally do that. Has surely been a big disadvantage in previous seasons.

Great to see Lochy back, seeing as he's superfit to begin with hopefully that early January target can be pushed forward to around Xmas time.

The Herald viewpoint http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=10694364

Yuz, exciting. Come on Waitak!

at half-time the score is 0-0

1 nil Waitak, penalty by Pearce

who gave away penalty?

Emblem on, all alive again

Nick Branch playing for Phoenix A, anyone know how he went? A personal favourite of mine, good player

Which Nix 1st team squad players are playing?

Ft 1-0. Walsh was strong, pavlovic did a nice 1, 2 that had to be cleared off the line.edward l2010-12-15 22:08:19

1 Reece Crowther (GK)

2 Ashton Pett (Bevin 53)

3 Tony Lochhead(Higgins 45)

4 Tom Biss

5 Paul Cunningham

6 Nick Branch

7 Diego Walsh

8 Justin Gulley

9 Sean Lovemore (Davis 72)

10 Mirjan Pavlovic

11 Caleb Rufer (Solomon 53)

Substitutes


1 Danyon Drake (RGK)

12 Liam Higgins

13 Alec Solomon

14 Andy Bevin

15 Tom Davis

Crowther LOL

How was Lochy?

Jesus 1-0.

Was sure Waitak would put 5 on that side.

Pretty sure yes.

Mully said his trials were for a March or something start.

Nix offered a bit in the first half, Paul Cunningham impressed me,I thought he generally played Krishna well, Crowther did well apart from the foul for the penalty, Lochy looked predictably rusty (and could perhaps have been sent off for one particularly cynical professional shirt-pull) but other than that Waitak should have won by 5. Nix showed virtually nothing in the second forty-five.

That's interesting re Cunningham.. wonder if Ricki's looking at him as an 'injury replacement' for Paston :) That'd boost our defensive stocks a bit..

went to the game number 5 cunnigham best player

How old is Cunningham? Am I wrong thinking he isn't a youth player, but still played in this "youth" team?

Phoenix 'A" not Phoenix youth.

So he's a kiwi CB? Played S-League?

Is he attached? And how old?

Just read that he is 24. Studied at West Virginia State University in the US and had an unsuccessful trial at Millwall. Was playing club football in Perth and training with the Glory before he trialled in Singapore.Luis Garcia2010-12-16 21:08:21

On the subject of Cunningham, I'd sign him. Big lad, not lacking in pace, dominant in the air in both boxes, reminds me a bit of Per Mertesacker.

Not sure if this has been posted, but i wish we had stuff like this for every Phoenix A match.

Highlights

I mean, if someone can do a show on grassroots rugby.. why not grassroot football!goldienz2010-12-20 12:40:42

Anyone heading to the Napier match on Wednesday?

Maybe

 

Me too.

This.

On second thought, maybe I'll go to the national aquarium instead...

Possible