My position on this subject is fairly well known. I do not like the Phoenix having to play games away from home. I have traveled to most of the "home" games outside of Wellington over the years, & I have had a bloody good time in all of the host cities.
My objection this year is heightened due to the total disregard of the supporters based in the Wellington Region , by the club.
To expect season ticket holders to travel away four times in a season for a home game is ludicrous. What makes it even more unbelievable is the timing. Trips to Hamilton & Auckland on consecutive weeks prior to Xmas is just not financially achievable for a lot of season ticket holders.
I put the blame totally on the club for this.
They knew that the stadium was being resurfaced in december, why didnt they arrange for at least one game to be rescheduled in Aussie?
It is not the fault of the Hamilton , Auckland or New Plymouth fans. It's a bonus for them to see the Phoenix close to home.
The Traveling Circus has also been insisted upon by Huawei, they have their NZ HQ in Auckland & want the Phoenix to play up there more often! Why bother sponsoring a Wellington based franchise if you want a team closer to home?
To add insult to injury & to really highlight the clubs disregard for the season ticket holders they are trying to increase the Metrics of membership by introducing 3 game memberships that are significantly cheaper than season ticket prices.
Season ticket holders have to pay in advance & get 10 games in Wellington. I paid $16.90 per game for these 10 games ( I also have tickets to the away games but I cannot go to most of them). Currently there is a "Hat-Trick" promo for the 3 scheduled games in January.
Due to the Victory game being postoned the "Hat-Trick" promo now includes 4 games for the price of $25 in the Yellow Fever, ($6.25/game) or a Silver Ticket for $50 ($12.50/game). It appears to me ( plus others I have spoken to, who don't come on the YF Forum) as though the club dont give a second thought to the supporters who pay well in advance the higher dollars & go to watch them more often than any other supporters in the country.
There has been VERY poor marketing to engage the half million people in the Wellington Region, but there seems to be more emphasis on trying to get bigger crowds in Auckland !!!!
A small number of over opinionated inhabitants outside of the Wellington Region think that it is their right to have the Wellington Phoenix play in Auckland. They complain about QBE being to difficult to get to, they complained about Eden Park, they complain that its hard to get transport back from Hamilton, but they still think it is their right to NOT have to travel very far.
I disagree, we're the WELLINGTON Phoenix, not the NZ Phoenix. Welnix stated they were taking over the club for the benefit of Wellington, & they were only looking for the club to be self funding.
The atmosphere around the club & the Yellow Fever has changed over the past 12 months, sadly, not for the better!
So if Rob Morrison, et al, want to take the club to Auckland , I predict that they will go the same way as the Kingz & the Knights!