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MESSAGE OF WELCOME FROM GENERAL MANAGER, DAVID DOME Hello and welcome to another home match for the Wellington Phoenix, at our adopted home of WIN Stadium in beautiful Wollongong.
for us in the first two matches - each have big shoes to fill and so far they’ve proven themselves more than up to the task.
This is our third match of the season and we’re confident about picking up the full three points against the Newcastle Jets, especially when looking back at our performance against Macarthur FC last round.
Mirza Muratovic and Matt Ridenton have also been solid in the minutes they’ve played, and it’s been encouraging to see them gell with the rest of the squad - and to see veterans like David Ball and Luke DeVere provide a strong mentoring presence to them as well.
We know he deserved to win that match and although that dubious red card impacted us in a huge way - both on the night and in tonight’s match as Rufer sits out with suspension - the best thing to do is move on and set our sights on the future.
I want to again thank everyone in Wollongong who have helped us to settle in over past few months, you’ve helped to make a difficult situation much easier with your hospitality.
I’ve been encouraged by the play of our newcomers this season, some of them new to the A-League and others returning back into the fold.
As soon as Covid restrictions ease, our plan is to be more involved in the community and to be able to meet as many new fans as possible.
Clayton Lewis, James McGarry and Joshua Laws have all been exceptional
Thanks again everyone and get ready for a great match tonight! COYN!
PHOTOGRAPHY: Cameron MacIntosh (Photomac), Getty Images PRINTING: University of Wollongong COPYRIGHT: Reproduction in whole or in part by any means is prohibited. DISCLAIMER: The opinions expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the publisher. Although all material is checked for accuracy, no liability is assumed by the publisher for any loss due to material in this magazine. All details are correct as at time of print.
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YOUR 2020/21 WELLINGTON PHOENIX SQUAD #1
GK
#2
DEF
STEFAN MARINOVIC
#5
DEF
LIAM MCGING
#6
# 10
DAVID BALL
# 14
# 15
#4
MID
MID
# 11
#8
FWD
MIRZA MURATOVIC
# 16
# 12
MID
MATTHEW RIDENTON
DEF
LOUIS FENTON
MID
CAMERON DEVLIN
JAUSHUA SOTIRIO
FWD
DEF
TE ATAWHAI HUDSON-WIHONGI
RENO PISCOPO
ULISES DAVILA
MID
ALEX RUFER
#7
TIM PAYNE
FWD
DEF
LUKE DEVERE
DEF
JAMES MCGARRY
#9
#3
# 17
FWD
TOMER HEMED
YOUR 2020/21 WELLINGTON PHOENIX SQUAD # 18
FWD
# 19
BEN WAINE
# 23
DEF
# 20
SAM SUTTON
GK
# 21
OLIVER SAIL
DEF
JOSHUA LAWS
MID
CLAYTON LEWIS
COACH UFUK TALAY
1
LEWIS ITALIANO
GK
17 VALENTINO YUEL
DEF
2
JOHN KOUTROUMBIS
DEF
18 JACK ARMSON
MID
3
JASON HOFFMAN
DEF
19 KOSTA PETRATOS
FWD
4
NIGEL BOOGAARD
DEF
22 LACHLAN JACKSON
MID
5
BENJAMIN KANTAROVSKI
MID
23 JACK DUNCAN
GK
6
STEVEN UGARKOVIC
DEF
24 CONNOR O’TOOLE
DEF
9
ROY O’DONOVAN
DEF
25 JACK SIMMONS
DEF
11
RAMY NAJJARINE
MID
26 ARCHIE GOODWIN
MID
13 MAKI PETRATOS
MID
27 LUCAS MAURAGIS
MID
14 ALI ABBAS
FWD
32 ANGUS THURGATE
GK
15 TETE YENGI
FWD
44 NIKOLAI TOPOR-STANLEY
DEF
WELLINGTON PHOENIX LOOKING TO GROUND NEWCASTLE JETS The Wellington Phoenix are keen to pick up their first win of the 2020/21 A-League season, as they take on bottom-placed Newcastle Jets at WIN Stadium tonight.
previous round, with Tomer Hemed and Ulises Davila making their first starts of the season and David Ball scoring a difficult goal in the first half off a pass from James McGarry.
This will be Wellington’s first match in 15 days, and only their second time back at their home ground in Wollongong since playing Sydney FC on 2 Jan.
Both McGarry and Clayton Lewis have impressed so far this season, as has newcomer Joshua Laws with his stead play at centre back.
They’ll be without both suspended midfielder Alex Rufer, who was sent off thanks to a controversial red card in their 1-1 draw against Macarthur FC, and Reno Piscopo as he continues to work his way back from a calf injury. The Phoenix will be greatly encouraged by the play of their imports against Macarthur FC in the
And Cameron Devlin has continued to build on his impressive play from last season, acting as a gritty disruptor that can cause havoc against opponents in the midfield. Meanwhile the Newcastle Jets have been winless in four matches this season, giving up a competitionleading seven goals allowed during this time - versus three goals scored. Despite their record, young players
Valentino Yuel and Ramy Najjarine have impressed, and the club has established vets in Nikolai ToporStanley, Roy O’Donovan and captain Nigel Boogaard to rely on.
start to build that momentum going forward – teams are a lot closer to each other and I think it’s going to be a great race for team at the end of the season.
Coach Ufuk Talay says that despite the Jets record, they should still be viewed as a dangerous team under interim coach Craig Deans.
“It’s very important we get all six points from our next two games and start to build that momentum going forward.”
“They’ll have a bit of pressure on them to win the game but also they’ll have nothing to lose – it’s always a tough opponent to play against when there’s little expectation to win,” says Talay. “But they’ve maintained a core group of players over the past three or four seasons, some very experienced players so it will still be a difficult game for us.” Talay says that it’s important for the Phoenix to win their next two games so they can stay “close to the pack” on the A-League competition ladder. “It’s very important we get all six points from our next two games and
“I believe we’re a very good team and the football we played against Macarthur – until we went to 10 men – was some really good football, we know we’re up there and we’ll be challenging to be better than we were last season. “So we’ll continue to build every game, and I feel if we’re clinical against Newcastle then we’ll come away with the three points.” The Wellington Phoenix takes on the Newcastle Jets tonight at WIN Stadium from 6.10pm.
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BEN WAINE ON LIFE IN WOLLONGONG Wellington Phoenix forward, Ben Waine spoke with Jordan Taylor last week about life in Wollongong and re-locating to Australia at the young age of 19.
He says the team has bonded since being based in Wollongong and they appreciate the support received from the Wollongong locals.
Waine is currently rooming with teammate Sam Sutton at the University of Wollongong, but they are both looking to move into an apartment by the end of the month.
“We’ve bonded really well. It helps that the first couple of weeks when there were new players coming in, we were all living in the uni together, so we spent a lot of time with each other.
“I’m really enjoying the challenge and moving away from home for the first time,” says Waine.
“(The support from Wollongong) has been really good, better than I expected.
“I think it helps that Sam is in the same situation, so we’re feeling the same things and we can keep an eye on each other and make sure we’re all good”
“I’ve seen a lot of Nix supporters, even just getting Ubers around the place a lot of the Uber drivers ask about us - I think we’re picking up a <Continued on next page>
couple supporters here and there from the people that we talk to.” In his downtime, Waine has been enjoying the Wollongong sunshine. “When I’m not training I like going to the beach, the weather’s been unreal so the beach has been really nice. “And my golf clubs finally arrived so I’ll have to get down for a swing at the golf course.”
“(The support from Wollongong) has been really good, better than I expected.” Waine credits the Wellington Phoenix Reserves for helping him prepare for playing in the A-League. “There’s always a noticeable step up from the premiership to the A-League. The good thing about playing the Reserves and being in the Academy is it prepares you for what professional football will be like. “In the Academy we’re training about the same amount, we have gym sessions, and a lot of focus on nutrition so it prepared me pretty well to come into the Phoenix first team.” Having already achieved so much at a young age, including becoming the club’s youngest ever goal-scorer last season, Waine is keen to continue the momentum and has big goals for 2021 and beyond.
“My main goal was to be a professional footballer and I’ve achieved that - so now it’s about kicking on and creating new goals for myself. “For me, looking at the Olympic squad coming up, July’s a big one. “Even just getting first team minutes and helping the team as much as I can, whether that’s with goals or assists, that’s really big for me.”
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