The Auckland FC and Wellington Phoenix squads have been rated by NZME's Jason Pine. Photos / Getty Images
Auckland FC and the Wellington Phoenix have finalised their squads for the upcoming A-League Men’s season. Who is stronger? Jason Pine breaks down the respective rosters.
Goalkeepers
Auckland FC: Alex Paulsen, Michael Woud, Joe Knowles
The acquisition of Paulsen, who had a sensational 2023-24 season with the Phoenix, may have been controversial but it secured Auckland FC the A-League’s reigning goalkeeper of the year. The Auckland-born gloveman is one of the most exciting prospects to emerge in New Zealand in recent years, earning a move to Premier League side Bournemouth before his loan back to the A-League’s new boys. Woud, with six New Zealand caps, is a very handy back-up and would have fancied himself as the No 1 before Paulsen arrived; his job now is to keep the pressure on and be ready when opportunity knocks. Teenager Knowles has been first-choice for Auckland National League club Eastern Suburbs for the past two seasons.
Rating: 9/10
Wellington Phoenix: Josh Oluwayemi, Alby Kelly-Heald, Dublin Boon
Paulsen’s departure was compounded by the additional loss of his very capable back-up Jack Duncan to the Melbourne Victory. Last season’s third-choice custodian Kelly-Heald (the twin brother of defender Lukas) is still a work in progress, so the Nix have used an import spot on a former Tottenham youth keeper, English-Nigerian Oluwayemi. Early reports suggest an impressive physical prowess and the ability to play with the ball at his feet, a hallmark of coach Giancarlo Italiano’s tactics. Scholarship keeper Boon, who spent last year playing in the Netherlands, completes the trio.
Rating: 7/10
Fullbacks
Auckland FC: Hiroki Sakai, Callan Elliot, Francis de Vries, Scott Galloway
Highly decorated, 75-cap Japanese international Sakai was Auckland’s first import signing and brings the experience of three Fifa World Cups and two Olympic Games. His status is beyond question, with an added ability to play centrally if required. On the left, de Vries will be deeply motivated to add to his six New Zealand caps and contributes pace and precise delivery from wide positions, while two-time A-League champion Galloway brings 211 games of competition experience and the ability to play on both sides of the back four. Former Phoenix and All Whites right back Elliot has also emerged from 18 months in the footballing wilderness to stake his claim.
Rating: 8/10
Wellington Phoenix: Tim Payne, Matt Sheridan, Sam Sutton, Lukas Kelly-Heald
Payne is first-choice right back for club and country and has quickly grown into one of the most accomplished fullbacks in the A-League, while also able to cover centre back when needed. Sutton will look to lock down the left back spot in his fifth year in the A-League, having shared the duties with Kelly-Heald last season. Kelly-Heald continues to develop and may even be used centrally after the departure of Finn Surman, while Sheridan impressed in his limited opportunities last season and looks at home at this level, despite his relative inexperience.
Rating: 7/10
Centre-backs
Auckland FC: Dan Hall, Nando Pijnaker, Tommy Smith
Hall arrives after back-to-back A-League championships with the Central Coast Mariners and was practically ever-present last season alongside Brian Kaltak. Pijnaker has earned a regular starting spot with the All Whites in recent years and is back in New Zealand after five years in Europe, most recently with Sligo Rovers in Ireland. Smith’s vast experience and positive influence inside the playing group will be invaluable, even if his starting minutes may be limited.
Rating: 8/10
Wellington Phoenix: Scott Wootton, Isaac Hughes, Corban Piper
Englishman Wootton played every minute of last season and was an unsung hero in Wellington’s run deep into the playoffs. Finn Surman’s departure has left a sizable hole, though, with Hughes likely to have the first opportunity to fill it, having impressed in his 11 appearances last season, while Kelly-Heald may also be an option to play centrally. Freshly arrived Piper has played largely in midfield for Birkenhead, but is very comfortable in defence and more likely to play there than in the engine room for Wellington.
Rating: 7/10
Defensive midfielders
Auckland FC: Cam Howieson, Louis Verstraete, Luis Felipe Gallegos, Finn McKenlay, Adama Coulibaly, Oliver Middleton
Howieson has long been regarded as New Zealand’s best domestic player and the 20-cap All White will finally get the chance to play professionally in his home country. He’ll have a battle on his hands for minutes, though, with highly credentialed Chilean Gallegos and Belgian age-group international Verstraete favoured to start, despite being relatively unknown on these shores. Scholarship teenagers McKenlay, Coulibaly and Middleton will continue their footballing education and push for opportunities.
Rating: 7/10
Wellington Phoenix: Alex Rufer, Mohammad Al-Taay, Paulo Retre, Fin Conchie
Rufer was one of Wellington’s best last season, leading the side in words and actions and being integral to his side’s finals run, while also earning an All Whites recall and playing in New Zealand’s last seven internationals, including a start against the United States. Retre is a terrific signing, bringing nearly 200 games of A-League experience and two championship titles from his time with Melbourne City and Sydney FC. Iraqi international Al-Taay enjoyed a solid first season in Wellington, playing in all but two of the side’s 29 matches, while Conchie was an able back-up, adding solidity when required.
Rating: 8/10
Attacking midfielders
Auckland FC: Jake Brimmer, Jesse Randall, Joey Champness, Luis Toomey, Liam Gillion
Brimmer won the Johnny Warren Medal for the A-League’s best player in the 2021-22 season and has long been regarded as one of the best midfielders in the competition with a tenacity, drive, passing range and eye for goal that set him apart from most others. Nine-cap All White Champness is superb on his day but has been curiously inconsistent throughout his career, while Gillion, Toomey and Randall have been domestic standouts and will hope to make the step up.
Rating: 7/10
Wellington Phoenix: Marco Rojas, Hideki Ishige, Kazuki Nagasawa
Rojas returns to the club where he made his name as a teenager before going on to win the Johnny Warren Medal with Melbourne Victory and earn the nickname the “Kiwi Messi”. His A-League stints have been inter-dispersed with time in Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Denmark and Chile and while he’s now 32, there’s no doubting his class. The versatile Japanese pair of Ishige and Nagasawa are relatively unknown but come with good pedigree, each having played more than 300 professional games in their homeland. Both have impressed the club’s coaching staff with their technical ability in pre-season outings.
Rating: 8/10
Strikers
Auckland FC: Guillermo May, Logan Rogerson, Max Mata, Jonty Bidois
Uruguayan marksman May will lead the line, having played in top leagues in both Uruguay and Argentina, along with a spell in Spain early in his career. Depending on the formation adopted by coach Steve Corica, which may well consist of just one out-and-out striker, recent All Whites Mata and Rogerson and scholarship signing Bidois may have to be patient or look for opportunities in wide positions.
Rating: 7/10
Wellington Phoenix: Kosta Barbarouses, David Ball, Oskar van Hattum, Luke Supyk, Gabriel Sloane-Rodrigues, Luke Brooke-Smith
Barbarouses made a mockery of suggestions he was past his best with a standout 2023-24 season, scoring 13 goals, earning player-of-the-year honours and a recall to the national side. Ball’s goal drought is well-publicised but he still adds immense value on and off the pitch, with the likes of Ben Waine and Ben Old crediting him with their development. Van Hattum wants to go to the next level, having excelled in an impact role last season, while young guns Supyk, Sloane-Rodrigues and Brooke-Smith have been turning heads with their energy and fearlessness during pre-season.
Rating: 8/10
Coaching staff
Auckland FC: Steve Corica, Danny Hay, Jonathan Gould
The man known widely as “Bimbi” won back-to-back A-League championships with Sydney FC and brings close to 150 games of managerial experience across the Tasman, assisted by one of New Zealand’s best-ever players and former All Whites head coach Hay, with his deep knowledge and understanding of local talent. Former Scottish international Gould had three separate stints as goalkeeping coach with the Phoenix, as well as vast experience in the United Kingdom.
Rating: 8/10
Wellington Phoenix: Giancarlo Italiano, Adam Griffiths, Ruben Parker
Italiano – or “Chief”, as he’s known to most – guided Wellington to their best campaign in his first season as a professional head coach, meshing an unshakeable belief in his system with a willingness to trust younger players to implement it. Griffiths was an A-League champion with Newcastle and is widely credited with devising and overseeing the defensive system that saw the Phoenix concede fewer goals than anyone else last season, while Parker was a key figure in Paulsen’s rise from academy player to A-League star.
Rating: 8/10
TOTALS:
Auckland FC: 54
Wellington Phoenix: 53