R1 vs Newcastle Jets | 7pm Sun 11th Oct | 12pm Backbencher

Weather forecast looks good so should be a cracker of a game. We will no doubt be rusty in our first game, but i'm gonna go for a 2-1 win.

Dress warm though, once that sun goes down it'll get quite cold.

I feel like it'll take us a while to get going this season - A-Rod didnt get a proper pre season because of injury and the Jeff has come in late. Picking a sneaky 1-0 win. Dura with the goal.

TAB odds for which body part to score?

Whenever someone posts Jeff (as in Jeffrey Sarpong) I keep thinking of Jeff Vader...

What about SthnJeff?

Too many Jeffs on the dance floor... 

If you haven't bought a ticket yet : http://www.grabone.co.nz/wellington/phoenix-footb...

Any ideas of possible formation and line up?

Ernie doing his block as they're only allowed access to the stadium for 30 minutes leading into their first game.

Piss Poor.

#WreckTheRec

As discussed on #PhoenixCity (Listen on the front page of www.yellowfever.co.nz if you haven't already) we think it'll be:

                    Moss

      Siggy    Dura     Manny

Fenton          Lia                [ Doyle/Danaskos]

          Roly           Riera

    Krishna                Wee Mac

Bench: Mambo, A Rod, [Danaskos/Doyle], Sarpong, Appiah

Just say no to a back three!

Why?

I thought Ernie had shifted away from a set back three in favour of a back two with the DM dropping in to make a three only when both the FBs have gone forward?  I thought that's what Dura had explained in the last podcast.  That line up looks too defensive for the Jets at home in the first game of the season.

If we have to play a back three....

Moss

Dura  Siggy  Manny 

Fenton  Reira Doyle/dan

Roly  Mac

Krishna Sarpong

I like this formation.  It offers better protection for back line thru the middle, so....watch the jets look to pop balls in behind all day and overlap tho.   Siggy should play the CB as he offers better cover than dura does I reckon.... On attack i think we'll be coming down the right more often than not....

Im picking a storming start.  3-1 to us.

Andrew Durante not training today, calf problem. Expected to be fit on Sunday.

— Simon Hampton (@SimonHampton9) October 6, 2015

Fair call. so perhaps:

                    Moss

           Siggy        Dura

Fenton         Lia             Manny

          Roly             Riera

  Krishna      WeeMac     [Sarpong/Appiah/Powell]    

It's on stuff - the Phoenix asked for permission to train in the stadium last week but the stadium has two games on this week so they said you can have 30 mins on the field and 30 mins on the side line. The ground staff didn't want the Phoenix training at all.

It's a game of he said she said, Ernie is saying they are the biggest tennants so should be allowed access when required, the stadium are saying the Phoenix need to get their ass into gear and ask for permission further in advance.

I was reading that article and finding myself agreeing with the stadium. 

That is a dreadful non attacking line up.  0-0.  What would Reira do that far forward?

I think it could be more fluid, and actually trying to pin it down into a simple diagram might not do it justice. 

Maybe something more like this on defence:

                      Moss

Fenton   Siggy   Dura    Manny

                Lia     Riera

         Roly         WeeMac

          Krishna  Sarpong    

On attack, if both the fullbacks advance then one of the DMs drops into the backline and Roly and WeeMac tuck into a more central role:

                  x

         x       x        x

                  x

 x        x          x        x

            x         x

If one fullback advances (most likely Fenton) then an AM (most likely WeeMac) drifts wide and plays as an auxillary winger ( a false 11?) and then Manny shuffles across to make a back 3 again:

                   x

           x      x       x  

              x       x 

   x              x           x

              x        x

I think WeeMac has alway looked better in a wider role too so that last shape would suit him

Yeah, but 30 mins??

What a joke.

Pax? 

<Self-edit> Talking more bollocks than usual :-) 

Rebel Sports in Palmy have Home shirts (short and long sleeve), Away shirts, training tops, polo's and the new hoodies.

Stuff has had regular articles, mostly positive, plus advertising in the paper for first home game of the season:  http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/football/a-league

Football Central have this season's strip available from Tory St, Wellington & online:
 http://footballcentral.co.nz/collections/phoenix

Rebel Sports have been advertising discounts, of at least 10%, on the new Phoenix strip every weekend, according to their usual 'sale ends on Sunday' policy: 
http://www.rebelsport.co.nz/clothing/supporters-ge...

Ditto, Went in expecting to agree with Ernie but Harmon made some fair points I thought. We knew the first game of the season was v Newcastle at Westpac, so why were we so late on requesting a training session there?

The current gusty wind that started yesterday may have been an influencing point. They were predicted last week.

Same thing he has been doing THROUGHOUT the preseason, playing centrally up to the edge of and into the penalty area on attack, and moving into space as an outlet for Vinniesta.

Personally, I agree he is MUCH better in the spot Lia is in above. But I wasn't posting what I want to see, I was posting what I think we WILL see.

I'd swap Lia and Riera personally, guessing you don't think that will happen based on preseason formations?

Swap Riera for Lia and swap Lia for Alex.

I found myself on the fence when I expected to side with Merrick.

Shouldn't there be an expectation of training and game time set between the 2 way in advance?  If Westpac hadn't heard from them then a courtesy call to their customer to clarify would make the most sense to me.

It all seems a bit silly, We should just turn Newtown into a football ground, parking and pubs and be done with it.  Then Harmon can celebrate all of the field time he has to dedicate to the teams that aren't playing there because Nixie stadium is cheaper.

Yes, won't happen.

Based on (a) pre-season formations played and (b) based on what Dura said on #Phonix City - the plan now is not 3 at the back but 2 CBs and 2 wide wingback/full backs (Fenton and Manny or Doyle or Danaskos), and that the rule Ernie insisted on used to be that only one of the full backs went forward at once, but that he was now allowing both to bomb forward, but when they did the holding DM would drop back between Siggy and Dew-ra to leave 3 at a back, and that Lia was the preferred option for the drop back into the back 3 ahead of Albert, so Albert was playing further forward now.

Just bought an extra ticket from that grab one deal. I just have a quick question - the printed coupon says scan this barcode for entry but there is no barcode on the coupon. Do they mean the QR code? Has anyone had issues using grab one tickets to get into games before? 

for people travelling to wellington on sunday be aware it is the end of school holidays and traffic is usually a lot heavier than a normal sunday so give yourself plenty of time to travel so you do not miss kick off.