Nick Ward has wasted little time in making his mark with the Wellington Phoenix. His stunning strike in his first start steered his new club to a 2-1 win over Sydney FC at Westpac Stadium on Saturday night.
Tonight he has the chance to repeat the effort against the other
A-League heavyweight, Melbourne Victory, at AAMI Park.
It has been a quick turnaround for the classy midfielder, who was snapped up by Phoenix coach Ricki Herbert from the Victory.
"I'm excited about it. It's a good challenge for me and I'm really looking forward to playing against my ex-team-mates and giving them a good hiding," said Ward with a smile.
"It is good to take that [the confidence from scoring] into the game against Melbourne and hopefully I can reproduce something like that again."
While Herbert, who flew out with his players on Monday, has yet to settle on his starting XI - he was keen to give them as much time to recover given the short turnaround - it seems certain Ward will again be partnered in midfield by Tim Brown, with Vince Lia likely to be in contention if recovered from a hamstring strain.
Manny Muscat, used in a defensive midfield role in the win over Sydney, could switch to his normal right back role, with Troy Hearfield heading for the bench.
Up front Herbert is likely to stay with Leo Bertos, Paul Ifill and Chris Greenace, while in defence he will consider giving newcomer Jade North some game time.
"I'm not sure about Jade yet," said Herbert. "He has had a difficult trip back from Europe so we will wait and see until after they have trained.
"Having said that, it could be we will go with the same team who started against Sydney. Melbourne away will be a harder ask than Sydney at home."
The Phoenix must also find better away form if they are to be serious contenders in this season's Hyundai A-League.
Last season they won only three of 15 games across the Tasman, drawing 1-1 and losing 4-0 to the Victory. Their only wins were 1-0 against Newcastle and Gold Coast and 2-0 against Central Coast.
It is not going to be easy as the Phoenix face the Victory tonight and return to the same ground on Sunday to play newcomers Melbourne Heart.
While delighted with his team's return to winning form after two all-too-familiar losses on the road, Phoenix captain Andrew Durante is desperate to keep the winning feeling.
"It was a fantastic win against Sydney. It wasn't easy but we got the right result," said Durante. "Coming off two losses we were desperate for the three points and we showed just how desperate we were by fighting to the end.
"Now we've got two games in five days - that's not something that happens regularly in the A-League. But we're professionals."
GAME ON
Melbourne Victory v Wellington Phoenix
AAMI Park, Melbourne
Tonight 9.30 (live SS1)
Nick Ward has wasted little time in making his mark with the Wellington Phoenix. His stunning strike in his first start steered his new club to a 2-1 win over Sydney FC at Westpac Stadium on Saturday night.
Tonight he has the chance to repeat the effort against the other
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