Your argument is flawed because every player that comes to play in the A League is not been sought by multiple A League clubs for their signature. There are enough good professionals in the world game to go around. We can compete with most of the other A League clubs for money and the likes of Sydney FC and the Melbournes [despite how often FFA change the rules to try and allow it] can't fill their rosters with 11 overseas players at a time.
Perhaps it is flawed, it was a hypothesis not a fact. I'm just streaming.
But... it is interesting that in the last few years we have gone through quite a few non-Kiwi players that haven't really adapted to Wellington. We have had a few, but they are the minority and therefore likely exceptions that prove the rule.
Wellington is a fantastic city for those of us that are looking to spend our lives here, but a footballer... is a footballer, and whether you believe it or not, they expect a certain lifestyle and status. Whether we think they deserve it is neither here nor there. All I am saying is that if we are trying to attract players, we need to consider all the things that attracts footballers, and what will help us appeal to them over our competitors. If we believe that all players should 'want' to play for the Phoenix, then we are forgetting that it is a transient job that has to have benefits for them. If you don't think it's a hard things for the Phoenix to do, you only need to look at the amount of player turnover we've had.