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A-League's Phoenix get another huge crowd

3 minute read

Wellington Phoenix could beat their own A-League attendance record this weekend when they take on Perth Glory in Auckland.

Wellington Phoenix.
Wellington Phoenix. Picture: Masanori Udagawa/Getty Images.

Another huge crowd will be on hand in New Zealand on Sunday as Wellington Phoenix continue their run to gatecrash the A-League finals.

Around 20,000 tickets have been sold for the visit of Perth Glory to Auckland's Eden Park on Sunday.

After last weekend's 24,000-strong showing in Wellington to welcome the Phoenix back to New Zealand, the parochial support is a huge boost for Ufuk Talay's side.

Wellington are unbeaten in eight matches, a streak which coincides with Steven Taylor's return to the A-League club.

The 35-year-old defender told AAP the record turnout fuelled last weekend's 3-0 win over Western United.

"The boys have been playing in Wollongong all season in a stadium with no fans. You lose the atmosphere and it's been hard for a lot of the players to compete in front of that," he said.

"You see the difference when you play in Wellington with 24,000 New Zealand fans.

"This is the business end and we need the final push with two games to go. Perfect place. Perfect time and venue for it."

Wellington haven't been in the top six all year but the stars are aligning for a run to finals.

On top of their current unbeaten streak, the Phoenix are unbeaten at Eden Park, with four wins and three draws from their seven matches.

Talay has also received two big fitness boosts, with Reno Piscopo and Ulises Davila both cleared to play Perth.

If they beat Glory, they can finish in the top six by beating Macarthur in their final home-and-away match next Friday.

The two final fixtures come with a little bit of extra spice for the Nix.

Perth, who finished sixth last season, knocked third-finishers Wellington out of the finals last year, while Macarthur have reportedly lured Phoenix star Davila to their club next season.

Taylor, back in Wellington on a short-term deal, is one player keen to stay on next season, but is yet to hear back from Phoenix management.

"I want to obviously stay here but that's all I can really say at the moment," he said.

"I'm just gonna focus on the football games that lie ahead.

"Get the games out of the way and we'll see what happens after that."

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