Wellington Phoenix coach Paul Temple is wary of a “potential banana skin” in the team’s push for the Ninja A-League finals.
The Phoenix are visiting two-time defending champions Sydney FC on Saturday evening in their penultimate road trip of the regular season.
The Sky Blues are having a season to forget. They sit bottom of the A-League ladder with just three wins and enter the weekend 10 points behind the eighth-placed Nix.
“They’ve got nothing to lose, and we’ve got a lot to lose,” Temple told media after training on Friday. “They’re going to play with less pressure on them and they’ve got really good players.
“There are still multiple champions in that team so it’s a real potential banana skin for us.
“I’m very aware of the qualities that they have so we won’t be taking them lightly just because of where they are on the table.
“It’s still Sydney FC, they’re still at home and they’ve still got very good players that can hurt you so we’re going to have to be at our best to get the points.”
Wellington have a spring back in their collective step after snapping their five-game winless run with a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over Western Sydney Wanderers last Sunday.
“Obviously we needed the win after a few games without one.
“It’s given everyone a lot of confidence. When you win in that manner and you come from behind it gives you even more confidence.
“Now we’ve got that win under our belt we’ll go to Sydney and I think you’ll see a lot more of us in the flow.”
Temple concedes there was a sense of relief on Sunday too as the pressure is building on the team.
“You can see how tight it all is. Not just for us, but for all of the other team’s fighting [for a finals berth] it’s going to go right to the wire.
“That pressure is going to stay there right until the end. It’s just about how you know deal with it.
“We focus on what we can do, what we can control and our processes and get confidence from that, but it’s going to be there right until the end of the season so it’s just a matter of dealing with it.”
Paul Temple is able to call-on Football Ferns forward Grace Jale for the first time in four weeks as she’s recovered from a hamstring strain.
“She’s been sharp at training this week, scoring goals and linking up with people, and you notice how much we’ve missed her as well.
“Really good to have her back in the team and looking forward to getting her on the pitch.
“When you have a few weeks out with a hamstring [injury] it’s unlikely she’s going to play 90.
“We’ll just have to manage the minutes, but having her back in the squad and around the training environment is great.”
Fellow Football Fern Mackenzie Barry, who was a late withdrawal from the side last week, remains sidelined with a foot injury meaning Maya McCutcheon is likely to again deputise at centre back.
“Without Mack we miss a bit of that recovery speed which I think Maya is really good at, and also she’s good on the ball and brings the ball out like a midfielder would.
“You get a little bit of both sides of it by playing her in there. It’s nice when you have a player like that.”
Japanese forward Mebae Tanaka is pushing for a place in the starting XI after coming on as a second half substitute to score the equaliser against Wanderers.
“When players come off the bench like that and they have that impact and essentially turn the game around it does make you think they deserve to start because of the impact they made.
“We have got a bit of a conundrum with that one. We’ll delay that decision until a little bit later, but she did exactly what she needed to do.
“The quality of both the goals was really, really high. Her one was something that we see from her quite regularly in training so it was quite nice for to be able to put that in during a game.
“For her now it’s about having that impact more consistently for the rest of the season. If she can do that she’s going to add huge value.”
The round 19 Ninja A-League match between the Wellington Phoenix and Sydney FC is scheduled to kick-off at Leichhardt Oval in Sydney at 7pm (5pm AEDT) Saturday and will be broadcast LIVE on Sky Sport 4 in New Zealand and on Paramount+ and 10 Play in Australia.
Most recent meeting: 21 December 2024 – Wellington Phoenix 2 Sydney FC 0
All-time A-League head to head: Phoenix 2W, Sydney 5W, 0D
Wellington Phoenix squad (two to be omitted): 2. Zoe MCMEEKEN, 3. Tiana JABER, 5. Alivia KELLY, 6. Maya MCCUTCHEON, 7. Grace JALE, 8. Amelia ABBOTT, 9. Olivia FERGUSSON, 10. Alyssa WHINHAM, 11. Manaia ELLIOTT, 13. Brooke NEARY (gk), 14. Mebae TANAKA, 15. Daisy BRAZENDALE, 16. Annalie LONGO (c), 17. Ela JEREZ, 19. Liv INGHAM, 20. Emma MAIN, 21. Lara WALL, 39. Carolina VILÃO (gk).
Unavailable: 4. Mackenzie BARRY (injured), 18. Ella MCCANN (injured), 22. Aimee DANIELI (gk) (injured), 23. Rebecca LAKE (injured).
Sydney FC squad (two to be omitted): 2. Margaux CHAUVET, 3. Faye BRYSON, 4. Tori TUMETH, 6. Shay HOLLMAN, 7. Millie FARROW, 9. Shea CONNORS, 12. Natalie TOBIN (c), 13. Jasmine BLACK (gk), 14. Abbey LEMON, 15. Mackenzie HAWKESBY, 16. Jordan THOMPSON, 18. Amber LUCHTMEIJER, 20. Princess IBINI, 21. Lucy JOHNSON, 22. Indiana DOS SANTOS, 24. Caley TALLON-HENNIKER, 26. Maddie CASPERS, 28. Beth MASON-JONES (gk).
Unavailable:5. Kirsty FENTON (injured), 8. Hana LOWRY (injured), 17. Kyah SIMON (injured).
Main image: Cam McIntosh/Photomac.
