Wellington Phoenix head coach Paul Temple is “raring to go” ahead of the opening game of the 2024-25 Ninja A-League.
The Nix travel to Melbourne to face Western United in round one, and will be aiming to make their first playoff appearance in their fourth season of existence.
“It’s been a good pre-season for us, we’ve been working really hard,” Temple said. “I think we’re just excited to get on the road and get going.”
“We see it at training every day. I’ve been really impressed with the mentality in pre-season.
“They’re a very good group to work with, their work ethic has been extremely high, the data tells us we’re a lot fitter than we were this time last year which is nice as well.
“Day to day, you get a glimpse of what the players are capable of when it all comes together.
“My job is to try and piece all those things together and get it working on game day, because 100% we have the ability to be that team.”
There is a near-clean bill of health for the match outside of long-term absentee Ella McCann, with only import striker Olivia Fergusson in doubt.
“Olivia Fergusson’s probably just a slight injury concern, so we’ll make a call on that just before the game but it’s nothing major at this point.
“There’s a really good continuity in the group with what we were doing last year, so it’s been easier to implement some of those philosophies and principles.
“The new players have caught up, and we have different ways to push the playing style outside of what’s on the grass.”
While away games were an Achilles heel for the Nix last year, Temple is confident in the team’s approach this time around.
Two pre-season friendlies in Australia have helped players acclimatise to the travel, both quick in-and-out trips rather than the usual approach of returning the day after a game.
“It’s a fresh start for us, we’ve got a chance tomorrow night to start the season well and get an away win which would be fantastic.
“This is a different team. I don’t think those things generally follow over seasons.
“We did it even harder than normal in the friendlies and the girls dealt with that really well, so this trip will feel a bit easier for them.
“There’s definitely things as well that we’re doing to try and help with the away travel, those little one percenters that can make a difference.
“How we deal with flights and recovery, that time around the airport: we’ve made a few changes and hopefully you’ll see them make a difference.”
While Western United, who finished third last season, present a tough challenge on paper, Temple isn’t sure what he will see on Friday night.
“Nobody knows what to expect in round one. Teams might change tactically, with new coaches and new players. You’re going into the unknown a little bit.
“You’re focusing mainly on yourself in round one, then once you see everyone play you start to build a bit of a profile of what people are doing.
“It will be up to us to work in-game on things, but we’ve been practising against loads of different systems. We can adapt quickly when we need to.”
And with a number of new players in the Phoenix squad, there will be debuts for both imports and Kiwi signings.
“It’s always exciting for players to play their first game for the club. I know there’s a lot of excitement in the group about that.
“I don’t see any issues in terms of players stepping up and being ready to play at this level tomorrow night.
“The ones who have come in from overseas are probably going to be more experienced with dealing with the situation of professional football.
“Someone like Lara Wall, who’s stepping up from the National League, she’s just done brilliantly in the two friendlies that we’ve played against A-League opposition.
“It’ll be good for fans to see our new players and get any first-game nerves out of the way, celebrate those milestones for them.”
The opening round Ninja A-League match between Western United and the Wellington Phoenix is scheduled to kick-off at Ironbark Fields in Tarneit at 9:00pm (7:00pm AEDT) Sunday and will be broadcast LIVE on Sky Sport 2 in New Zealand and on Paramount+ in Australia.
Most recent meeting: 18 February 2024 – Western United 3 Wellington Phoenix 0
All time A-League head to head: Phoenix 1W, Western 3W.
Wellington Phoenix squad (two to be omitted): 2. Zoe MCMEEKEN, 3. Tiana JABER, 4. Mackenzie BARRY, 6. Maya MCCUTCHEON, 7. Grace JALE, 9. Olivia FERGUSSON, 10. Alyssa WHINHAM, 11. Manaia ELLIOTT, 12. Ella MCMILLAN, 14. Mebae TANAKA, 15. Daisy BRAZENDALE, 16. Annalie LONGO (c), 19. Liv INGHAM, 20. Emma MAIN, 21. Lara WALL, 22. Aimee DANIELI (gk), 23. Rebecca LAKE, 39. Carolina VILÃO (gk).
Ins: Nil.
Outs: 18. Ella MCCANN (injured).
Unavailable: 18. Ella MCCANN (injured).
