A New Welly Nix Season Is Finally Upon Us
It’s been a long time coming and we’re still not exactly out of the woods with all the confusion but a brand new A-League season is finally here and the Wellington Phoenix are locked and loaded. Last season was largely excellent as Ufuk Talay’s first term in charge saw the Nix manage their highest ever league finish, although ultimately it ended in disappointment as the lads fell 1-0 to Perth Glory in their elimination final. Which followed on from four games without a win to end the regular season. Injuries, pandemic facilitating, competition uncertainty, inexperience in the big moments... lots of reasons why that slump happened. All of which was thoroughly dissected at the time. Point is, now begins the opportunity to make amends.
THE SQUAD
When Uffie first took over he mentioned that recruitment was the most important factor in building a successful football team. Well his money and his mouth must have identical coordinates because Talay’s recruitment in his first season was on an A+ level. Most of the players he brought into the club contributed to the Phoenix winning games of footy. Some from day one (Davila, Ball, DeVere, Marinovich), others had to bide their time a bit longer before we started seeing the best out of them (Devlin, Sotirio, Piscopo), while a few we only got positive glimpses of yet they definitely didn’t look out of place (Hudson-Wihongi, Wilson).
And that’s crucial because despite initial vibes that we wouldn’t have to do the annual ‘rebuilding two-thirds of the team’ dance that this club is so accustomed to... a combination of ambitious youngsters and covid-related cost-cutting (this is an organisation that got some pretty sizeable government subsidies during lockdown) meant it turned out that we would, in fact, be dancing that dance after all.
2020-21 Departures: Matti Steinmann (not re-signed, probably for financial reasons, now in India), Brandon Wilson (released to return home to Perth, since signed with the Glory), Liberato Cacace (sold to STVV in Belgium where he’s already outlasted Kevin Muscat), Callan Elliot (off contract, signed with Tony Popovich in Greece), Callum McCowatt (off contract, signed with some Ole Academy bros in Denmark), Walter Scott (released), Steven Taylor (released to sign in India for money/certainty), Zac Jones (not signed on pro terms, already got enough keepers), Gary Hooper (not re-signed, also ended up in India)
So to recap, that’s the captain gone, the top scorer gone, the best player gone, an influential import midfielder who started 24 games gone, the most exciting kiwi forward at the club gone, the late-season incumbent right back gone... and a couple other players for good luck. Meaning that for the Nix to be able to flow on from that campaign into this campaign with delicious ease, it would take some more next level recruitment. Here’s how that’s gone...
2020-21 Arrivals: Clayton Lewis (All Whites international midfielder, back in the pro stuff following a stint with Auckland City), James McGarry (All Whites international fullback, back in the pro stuff after leaving top flight Dutch side Willem II when the pandemic struck), Joshua Laws (Aussie youth international who can play midfield or defence), Matt Ridenton (All Whites midfielder and a former Nixer returning from stints with Newcastle Jets & Brisbane Roar), Mirza Muratovic (young Aussie forward with an eye for goal), Tomer Hemed (Israeli import striker who played Premier League with Brighton)
Not at all bad from the ol’ sand chickens, aye? Laws and Muratovic are very much in the Devlin and Piscopo range, exciting Australian prospects with something to prove at this level. Then chuck in three kiwi internationals who will fill out the depth at the club – and in McGarry’s case will probably start at left-back - and that’s a solid base to be building from.
The obvious concern is that there’s a lot of pressure on Tomer Hemed to deliver the goals that Gary Hooper did in the windows between his injuries. Hemed isn’t quite as pedigreed as Hooper but Hooper’s pedigree came with that fitness risk (otherwise he’d still be playing Champo in England and not venturing Down Under) and not having their only reliable goal-scorer for that elimination final proved a killer in the end. The best ability is availability. Tomer Hemed is 33 years old having come up at Maccabi Haifa before impressive spells at Mallorca, Almeria, and Brighton & Hove Albion. He most recently played for Charlton Athletic but was released at the end of last season after 19 appearances with no goals. Not a particularly prolific goal scorer in La Liga (27 goals in 101 games) or the Premier League (2 goals in 16 games) but the A-League is most definitely a different beast.
Hemed is the only new import been signed by the club this season. David Ball extended his contract while Ulises Davila has been (slightly surprisingly) promoted to captain... but there are still two import spots open. Would expect them to remain open too – that’s a reflection of the precarious financial state of the club more than anything. Sort of bummed they didn’t use this rare opportunity to take on a project player as an import like Tommy Semmy, maybe even have a punt on a Garbhan Coughlan or Adam Thurston. Emiliano Tade would have been on that list too except the way he ended things in South Africa suggests being holed up in Wollongong for several months away from family wouldn’t be an option for him. Fair enough.
But yes in the absence of a couple extra imports that shrinks the margin of error for other players, for example other defenders not having Steven Taylor to cover for them. Think of the irreplaceable things he does as a player (diving header blocks, mate) and as a leader (unintelligible roars of inspiration) and he’s the one player who has left the club who has not been adequately replaced (okay, Cacace too, but that was a different situation all around). Just a good thing they got Luke DeVere to re-sign because it could have been a real mess without either of them. As it is, that’s clearly the Nix’s weakest area. Seems like probably DeVere and Laws to start in game one with Te Atawhai Hudson-Wihongi at first drop.
SOME UNANSWERED QUESTIONS
Is Tomer Hemed the 15+ goal-scorer that this club needs? Or will it have to be more of a goals-by-committee approach? Because other than Uli Davila and his penalties those attacking midfielders really failed to deliver on that particular aspect in Uffie’s first campaign...
Last season the team lost four games in a row to start and didn’t get a win until game six. So how’s a complicated, delayed, extended, confusing, overseas, disrupted pre-season gonna prepare the fellas to hit the ground running this time around?
This defensive unit is undeniably weaker without Taylor and Cacace and this was a team whose most common result was a 2-1 win last season. Only five clean sheets in 27 matches. Any reason not to be worried sick about those crossover facts?
How’s James McGarry gonna go in Libby Cacace’s shoes? I notice nobody took Cacace’s number 13 jersey. Too much pressure in those digits.
Might we see a little more Sam Sutton this term after he signed on pro terms? And might we see him playing some back-up fullback, as predicted in these pages several times over the months?
Very interested to see how much Mirza Muratovic (and Ben Waine too for that matter) we get to see from the start as that guy (those two guys) does (do) seem to have that pesky goal-scoring knack which isn’t really there through the rest of the squad. So how goes it, Uffie?
Any chance still that we get some games in Aotearoa before the season is out?
And how much will the Wollongong locals get aboard the Welly Nix train?
Might not be possible this year for obvious reasons but will we get any more debutants from out of the academy system this term? Plenty of useful candidates, no doubt about that.
Louis Fenton is the most experienced current player for the club but is coming into the last year of his current deal and having largely been kept on the outer last season by injuries, Tim Payne and then Callan Elliot. So what’s LFPF got in store in his contract year?
Do we all agree that new home jersey is kinda rats?
If Uli Davila matches his goal tally from his first season then he’ll go fourth all-time on the club standings. What do we reckon, another dirty dozen for the hombre?
Already asked who might score the goals but maybe more important is how are we gonna score the goals? No more Cacace bounding up the left flank, though Payne brings an excellent crossing ability. Could we get more traditional wing play from the attacking mids? More of that direct stuff getting in behind the defence early? Hemed is clearly more of a ‘just get the ball into the box’ kinda striker rather than a runner. Gonna be very interesting to see if there are any tweaks in that way.
Oli Sail gonna get at least one minute of action this season?
Only seven dudes are under contract beyond this upcoming campaign (Rufer, Ball, Sotirio, Piscopo, Sutton, Hudson-Wihongi & Paine). Who’ll be the first of the rest of them to extend their stay in yellow & black? Also bonus question when will that first in-season extension occur? Last time it was New Year’s Day, this time that wouldn’t even be in-season.
A finals win this time, please?
THE EXPECTATIONS
All of these things are subject to change at the drop of a hat, especially this season, but coming off two straight finals appearances where the side was one-and-done... the target absolutely has to be a finals win. And in a competition like this you win one finals game and that’s you in title contention already. But that’s bonus ball material, just getting that first finals victory since 2012 is where the energy has to be directed.
The team was more than capable last time and couldn’t get it done. They don’t even have to have improved in the offseason for that to be a realistic target, they only have to sharpen up in a couple areas on the day. The Phoenix are coming off a third placed finish. Even if the defence is notably worse and a few of those wins become draws because of that... this should still be a top six side. There’s good depth here that’ll mean they can survive a few injuries/suspensions and Talay’s proven he can get the best out of his team tactically. Those things alone will help them stay away from the chasing pack.
Plus, like, the last two seasons matter and let-downs at the end of those seasons matter and the targets coming into any new campaign should always be to do better than the one before. Even if you just won everything there is to win... come back and win them all again by more. At least try to. This is professional football that we’re talking about, might as well be ambitious.
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