Wellington Phoenix made its long-awaited homecoming ahead of a massive home clash against rivals Western United in front of an expected bumper crowd at at Sky Stadium on Saturday, May 22.
It will be the first Phoenix fixture in New Zealand in 433 days after the club based itself in Wollongong, NSW for the 2020/21 campaign and spent the latter part of the 2019/20 season based in Australia, making enormous sacrifices to help the A-League withstand the logistical difficulties posed throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
The announcement of a trans-Tasman bubble between Australia and New Zealand on April 19 gave the club the chance to return home for the end of the season. The Phoenix left home in November, 2020 making this weekend’s clash with United an enormous opportunity for the faithful home fans to back their side into battle in one of the league’s newest rivalries.
Wellington will host United at Sky Stadium on May 22, then return to Australia to face Western Sydney Wanderers. The Phoenix then head to Aukland for a Distance Derby clash with Perth Glory at Eden Park on May 30 before rounding out the season with an away trip to Macarthur FC.
READ: Wednesday night preview: A-League, May 19
MW21 REPORT: Keogh scores four as Perth slice Wanderers apart in 5-1 win
The Phoenix are three points off the top six in eighth spot on the table with four games to play in the 2020/21 A-League campaign.
All the New Zealand outfit can do to keep their Finals Series hopes alive is win as many of those four games as possible to heap pressure onto the likes of Western Sydney Wanderers and Brisbane Roar in seventh and sixth place respectively, and the two teams below (Western United, Perth Glory) locked with the Phoenix on 28 points.
Wellington will take confidence from a 2-2 draw with league-leaders Melbourne City last time out, in which striker Tomer Hemed netted twice to hand his side a share of the points. Now, with attention turning to the homecoming clash with United at Sky Stadium, the club is expecting an impressive crowd to be on hand to welcome their side home in style.
Wellington Phoenix General Manager David Dome says the Phoenix recorded its strongest-ever start to ticket sales over a four-day period for any game besides a Finals Series match when tickets initially went up for grabs.
READ: Phoenix see high demand for tickets to Wellington match
You can't beat Wellington on a…😅🙌
⚫🟡 | https://t.co/SAVRs4rhYc pic.twitter.com/TkSUIjVpmY
— Wellington Phoenix 🔥 (@WgtnPhoenixFC) May 17, 2021
A matchup with Western United presents the perfect opportunity for the home crowd to raise its collective voice on Saturday afternoon, as former boss Mark Rudan comes to town. Rudan coached the Phoenix to the 2018/19 Finals Series before departing for a new opportunity in Victoria, taking Andrew Durante, Filip Kurto and Max Burgess away from Wellington and along for the ride.
After losing the first A-League fixture between the two teams in the 2019/20 season Wellington haven’t lost one since, recording three wins and a draw against the Green and Black leading into this Matchweek 22 fixture.
A Saturday-afternoon win for Ufuk Talay’s team will open up a three-point gap between the Phoenix and United, and help keep Wellington’s Finals Series hopes alive.
A congested table offers the chance for 10 of the 12 A-League clubs to sneak into the top six by the end of the season – and returning home for two crunch fixtures on home soil could prove pivotal to Wellington’s hopes of progressing to a third-consecutive Finals Series campaign.
