Disappointing end but Phoenix looking forward

A promising debut Hyundai A-League season ended on a low note for the Wellington Phoenix in Gosford on Saturday night but the future looks bright for the fledgling New Zealand-based club.



The Central Coast Mariners triumphed 2-0 on a boggy pitch at Bluetongue Stadium, the last-round loss consigning the Phoenix to last spot on the Hyundai A-League ladder – level on 20 points with Perth Glory but behind on goal difference.



Phoenix coach Ricki Herbert conceded it was disappointing to finish the season at the foot of the table.



“Nobody wants to finish last but I think the positives of the season outweigh the negatives for us. When this club was established just nine months ago we established that creating a solid foundation was the key and that on-field results would be secondary to that in the first season.



“We have now created a strong infrastructure in management and overall organisation. We’ve signed on key strategic partners and sponsors – including a principal sponsor in Sony – and, most importantly, we’ve been able to attract big crowds to our home games at Westpac Stadium. “



A total of 116,833 people passed through the turnstiles in the Phoenix’s 10 home games, with the club breaking record attendances for football matches in New Zealand. Added to that was the almost 32,000 people who watched the Phoenix take on David Beckham’s LA Galaxy in December – a record turnout for any football match in New Zealand.



“It was uncharted waters for everyone here at the club,” said Herbert. “But I think we’ve done more than enough to show that we’ve got a promising future. Some people may think that this season’s been disappointing – certainly we could have done better in some areas – but it’s important to recognise that for the most part we were very competitive and very good to watch throughout in an extremely tough and tight league.”



With the Phoenix now having time to plan for next season, Herbert and chief executive Tony Pignata will embark on a scouting mission to Europe next month in search of players to fill key areas in the squad. At the top of the list are players to bolster the defensive and attacking ends.



“Next season things will look very different,” said Herbert. “We now have the luxury of some time to dedicate to recruitment, which is something we didn’t have at the start of this season. That’s not a criticism of the players we had to call on in season one because they’ve all done a great job and no one has let us down. But we’ve had the chance to lay the foundations and now our focus is to build on that and ensure we are even more competitive in season two.”



There have been some real finds for the Phoenix this season, with striker Shane Smeltz finding the back of the net nine times in his team’s total goal tally of 25. At the other end, keeper Glen Moss had a stellar season and stamped his mark as one of the best custodians in the Hyundai A-League. But the Phoenix’s shaky defence leaked 37 goals.



“We started the season pretty well, including beating Sydney FC 2-1 away, but we had some poor patches,” Herbert said. “October was a bad month for us but then we got things back on track and we were still in the mix for the playoffs with four games left after a good run through November and December. But, at the end of the day, consistency was a problem for us and that’s something we’ll be working hard on. It’s a matter of players taking responsibility and a tougher approach to things on the park, and I think we’re getting very close to where we need to be.”



Fans got a glimpse of the future in against the Mariners on Saturday night, with Wellington striker Costa Barbarouses turning in a wonderful performance for the Phoenix in difficult, wet conditions that hampered the attacking instincts of both sides. The 18-year-old, in his run-on debut, was threatening throughout and showed what an impressive talent he is.



But it was the Mariners who took the three competition points in front of 9848 rain-soaked fans to keep their Hyundai A-League premiership hopes alive with goals to John Aloisi in the 52nd minute and Adam Kwasnik deep into injury time.