Footy Ferns x Cup of Nations: Not Quite vs South Korea
For seventy minutes that was a pretty excellent performance. The Ferns had a higher ranked opponent locked down at 0-0 and were arguably looking the more likely to score at that point.
Welly Nix Injury Dramas, Contract Confusion and Goalkeeping Yarns
Some funky old things coming out of the Welly Nix beat lately, tell you what. Injuries and suspensions and contract confusion and all sorts.
Flying Kiwis – March 5
Whoever decided it was a good idea to play a game of football in these conditions probably shouldn’t be in charge of deciding about where games of football are played as the Colorado Rapids hosted the Portland Timbers in their opening game of the 2019 MLS season in the coldest temperature ever recorded for an MLS game.
The Premmy Files – Week 19
HBU’s season has basically been held together, in as much as it’s held together at all, by the goals of Sam Mason-Smith. Utterly excellent all season, having now started all 16 games to date. And he’s scoring a goal a game, the legend, more on that later.
Footy Ferns x Cup of Nations: A Win! Against Argentina!
You know what the best part about that game was? CJ Bott’s goal, obviously… but a close second and much more important in the long run is that the Fernies played a team that they were capable of beating and they beat them, even without playing anywhere near peak fluency.
Footy Ferns x Cup of Nations: Those Pesky Aussies
Anytime the Football Ferns play the Matildas is a big deal, just as any time New Zealand and Australia meet in the sporting arena is a big deal. But for Tom Sermanni’s team this game had an even bigger context as the first game of a monumental 2019 which will culminate in the mid-year with the World Cup in France.
Flying Kiwis – February 26
The man, the myth. Christopher Grant Wood. They say that if you look closely enough on the Burnley club logo you can actually see his name tattooed into the palm of that random hand thing waving out from inside the shield. Because they knew, they always knew. And now the prophecies have come true.
The Premmy Files – Week 18
With the top four teams in the Premiership all sorted, the question becomes what is there left to play for amongst the poor souls left out of that picture? Pride is the obvious answer, although that doesn’t always take you too far.
The Welly Nix x Campbelltown Experiment: Part Two – The Bloody Aftermath
Part One should have been the end of this article but then Mark Rudan went and said some things. He sat in front of a bunch of microphones and he iterated rather bluntly that he’d made it very clear to the Phoenix how he felt about giving up their home field advantage for a game like this.
The Welly Nix x Campbelltown Experiment: Part One – The Game Itself
The first time the Nix played Sydney FC it was a turning point in their season. They’d won their opening game but then went four straight without even scoring a goal until putting three past SFC in a blistering 45 minutes of brilliant football.
Geordie Steve’s Coming Back Next Season… Not Sure About the Gaffer Though
Steven Taylor is sticking around for another year. Could be the quality of the Wellington coffee, could be the thriving arts and culture scene, could even be the length of the pins around town. The footy hasn’t been half bad either to be fair.
Flying Kiwis – February 20
Another win and Bordeaux are still frontrunners for third place in France with six more games remaining. 2-0 over FC Metz and that’s one more clean sheet for Footy Ferns keeper Erin Nayler ahead of the tour to Australia, bring it on.
The Premmy Files – Week 17
Three more games this week but three games which involved five of the top six teams on the ladder. In other words, given the precarious state of the league table, three games which had the potential to offer complete clarity to the top four make-up and complete confusion as to the order of that top four. Which is exactly what happened.
The Welly Nix Are Drawing A Few Too Many Games, Let’s Be Honest
Twenty two thousand six hundred and forty eight people filtered into Eden Park on Friday night in Auckland to watch the Wellington Phoenix. That’s more than the Super Rugby got the following night. More than the Nix have ever had before for a regular season game. The biggest crowd any A-League game has witnessed this season outside of Sydney or Melbourne.
The Premmy Files – Week 16 (and a half)
A person could get used to these midweek catch-up games. Early evening in the Aotearoa summer… not the easiest for the players but when you can settle down with the cricket on one screen and a livestream of Southern vs Auckland City on another… mate, that’s magic.
Flying Kiwis – February 13
The man scores goals, it’s what he does. Chris Wood went a fair while this season struggling to lock down a regular starting spot and struggling for that because the goals weren’t flowing but both issues have been well and truly taken care of lately.
Ponderings and Pontifications on the Current State of the Welly Nix Squad
In the end the transfer window passed with three signings and two releases. Cillian Sheridan turned up good to go as soon as January began. Mitch Nichols and Reuben Way were given the flick after pretty unglamorous contributions over the first half of the season. Then Antony Golec and Justin Gulley were signed to fill things out.
The Premmy Files – Week 16
Hamilton Wanderers hosting Canterbury United and really absolutely desperately needing a win to halt their downward spiral and keep their semi-final hopes alive. Lose and it’s basically all over for anyone outside the current top four.
Kiwi Keepers, A Missed Penalty, and Another Point Away From Home for the Welly Nix
As long as the Phoenix keep battling for points away from home and winning the ones in front of their own crowds then they can still make a real push for the top four. That’s the aim. This result did a little bit of damage to those hopes but it did a lot more damage to the Newcastle Jets trying to sneak back into the top six.
The Premmy Files – Week 15 (and a half)
In the proper punk attitude of revolt, both gaffers flipped a middle finger to midweek tradition and named unchanged lineups from the weekend. Probably not too much choice for the WeeNix given the senior side are away in Newcastle for tomorrow night’s game, while Team Welly didn’t need to change anything following their six-goal explosion against Hawke’s Bay.