Wellington Phoenix Women's Football Club is a professional women's football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. The Phoenix competes in the Australian premier women's soccer competition A-League Women, under licence from Football Federation Australia and New Zealand Football.
| Full name | Wellington Phoenix Women's Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Phoenix, Wahinix, Nix | |
| Short name | Wellington | |
| Founded | 10 September 2021 | |
| Ground | Sky Stadium, Wellington Jerry Collins Stadium, Porirua[1] | |
| Capacity | 34,500 | |
| Owner | WelNix Group | |
| Chairman | Robert Morrison | |
| Coach | Paul Temple[2] | |
| League | A-League Women | |
| 2022–23 | 11th of 11 | |
| Website | Club website | |
| ||
History edit
Establishment edit
For several years, there have been talks concerning the creation of a professional women's football team in New Zealand so as to boost the level of women's football in New Zealand and Oceania with the cost of travelling to away games a major barrier.[3][4] There were no professional clubs in New Zealand and the National League only featured amateur teams.The talks intensified after New Zealand won the rights to co-host the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup and the W-League plans to add three more expansion teams by that time.[5][6]
In September 2021, Phoenix announced they were one of the clubs in consideration under the W-League expansion and later confirmed creating a women's team.[7][8]
Inaugural season edit
On 11 October 2021, Wellington Phoenix announced Gemma Lewis would be the inaugural head coach of the side. They also announced that Natalie Lawrence would be her assistant for the 2021–22 season, making them one of two all-female coaching staffs in the A-League Women.[9] A few days later, they announced former Perth Glory keeper and 2020–21 players’ player of the year, Lily Alfeld as the clubs inaugural signing.[10] Alfeld was later announced as the club's inaugural captain.[11]
Phoenix played their home games at Wollongong with the hope of returning to their home stadium in Wellington later in the season. Wellington Phoenix started their debut season in the A-League in the 2021–22 season with a 0–0 draw against Western Sydney Wanderers at the Wollongong Showgrounds.[12]
Ava Pritchard scored the club's first goal in their second game of the season, in a 1–5 loss to Newcastle Jets.[13]
On 11 February 2022, the Phoenix achieved their first win in A-League Women history in a 3–0 away win against Canberra United.[14]
Players edit
First-team squad edit
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Management team edit
Technical staff edit
- As of 31 August 2023[17]
| Position | Staff |
|---|---|
| Manager |  Paul Temple |
| Assistant manager | Callum Holmes |
| Team analyst | Tyron Curtis |
| Goalkeeping Coach | Nick Stanton |
| Strength and conditioning coach | Kieran McMinn |
| Head physiotherapist | Mei Morton |
| Team operations & equipment manager | Wendy Turton |
Captaincy history edit
| Dates | Name | Honours (as captain) |
|---|---|---|
| 2021–2023 | Lily Alfeld[18] | Inaugural club captain |
| 2023– | Annalie Longo[19] |
Records and statistics edit
- Record Win: 5–0 vs Canberra United, A-League Women, 22 January 2023
- Record Defeat: 0–5 vs Sydney FC, A-League Women, 30 December 2021
- Record High Attendance: 5,532 vs Perth Glory, Mount Smart Stadium, 25 November 2023[20]
- Most Goals by a Player in a Game: 2
- Betsy Hassett vs Canberra United, A-League Women, 22 January 2023
- Milly Clegg vs Adelaide United, A-League Women, 28 March 2023
- Mariana Speckmaier vs Canberra United, A-League Women, 28 January 2024
- Emma Main vs Western Sydney Wanderers, A-League Women, 30 March 2024
- Most Wins in a Row: 3 matches, from 22 October 2023 to 12 November 2023
- Longest Undefeated Streak: 3 matches, from 22 October 2023 to 12 November 2023
- Most Goals In a Regular season: Mariana Speckmaier – 10 goals, 2023–24 A-League Women
Most appearances edit
Last updated 30 March 2024Competitive, professional matches only. All current players are in bold
| Name | Years | A-League Women | Finals | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mackenzie Barry | 2021– | 50 | 0 | 50 |
| 2 | Kate Taylor | 2021– | 42 | 0 | 42 |
| 3 | Michaela Foster | 2021– | 38 | 0 | 38 |
| Chloe Knott | 2021–2023 | 38 | 0 | 38 | |
| Alyssa Whinham | 2021– | 32 | 0 | 38 |
Top goalscorers edit
Last updated 30 March 2024Competitive, professional matches only, appearances including substitutes appear in brackets.
| Name | Years | A-League Women | Finals | Total | Games per goal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Mariana Speckmaier | 2023– | 10 (21) | 0 (0) | 10 (21) | 0.48 |
| 2 | Grace Jale | 2021–2022 | 6 (12) | 0 (0) | 6 (12) | 0.5 |
| 3 | Emma Main | 2023– | 5 (20) | 0 (0) | 5 (20) | 0.25 |
| Chloe Knott | 2021–2023 | 5 (38) | 0 (0) | 5 (38) | 0.13 | |
| 5 | Milly Clegg | 2022–2023 | 4 (16) | 0 (0) | 4 (16) | 0.25 |
| Michaela Robertson | 2022– | 4 (25) | 0 (0) | 4 (25) | 0.16 | |
| Ava Pritchard | 2021–2023 | 4 (32) | 0 (0) | 4 (32) | 0.13 | |
| Kate Taylor | 2021– | 4 (42) | 0 (0) | 4 (42) | 0.1 |
References edit
- ^ "Porirua to host Phoenix Women". Retrieved 12 September 2023.
- ^ "Academy technical director to take charge of the Nix". 7 May 2023. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
- ^ "A-League club aiming to start new W-League team". The Women's Game. 11 June 2020. Archived from the original on 6 July 2020. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
- ^ "New W-League team would likely be based in Sydney". The Women's Game. 14 June 2020. Archived from the original on 7 July 2020.
- ^ Gilhooly, Daniel (26 June 2020). "World Cup sparks call for pro team in New Zealand". The Women's Game. Archived from the original on 29 August 2020. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
- ^ "APL announces plans for expanded W-League". abc.net.au. 2 September 2021. Archived from the original on 2 September 2021.
- ^ Rollo, Phillip; Voerman, Andrew (3 September 2021). "Wellington Phoenix to be included in expanded W-League before 2023 World Cup". Stuff. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
- ^ Voerman, Andrew (10 September 2021). "Wellington Phoenix to field women's team in W-League with quota of Australian players". Stuff. Archived from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
- ^ "Wellington Phoenix Announces Lewis and Lawrence as Inaugural A-League Women's Coaching Staff". Wellington Phoenix. 11 October 2021.
- ^ "Experienced goalkeeper Lily Alfeld locked in as Wellington Phoenix women's first signing". Stuff. 15 October 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
- ^ "Lily Alfeld to captain Wellington Phoenix during debut A-League Women season". Stuff. 30 November 2021. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021.
- ^ "Phoenix draw in A-League Women debut against Wanderers". ABC News. 3 December 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
- ^ Rollo, Phillip (12 December 2021). "Ava Pritchard creates history with Wellington Phoenix's first A-League Women goal". Stuff. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
- ^ Rollo, Phillip (11 February 2022). "Wellington Phoenix celebrate first win in A-League Women after beating Canberra". Stuff. Archived from the original on 13 March 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
- ^ Wellington Phoenix [@WgtnPhoenixFC] (30 September 2023). "The 2023/24 Squad numbers for our A-League Women's team are 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐝!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Longo to lead new-look Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 11 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "New backroom staff for Phoenix women". Wellington Phoenix. 31 August 2023.
- ^ Rollo, Phillip (30 November 2021). "Lily Alfeld to captain Wellington Phoenix during debut A-League Women season". Stuff.
- ^ "Longo to lead new-look Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 11 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "W League Crowd statistics". ALeagueStats. Retrieved 14 June 2022.