A-League football clubs these days comprise multiple teams and require multiple facilities. A club’s physical infrastructure influences everything from club culture to team performance and after 20 years of A-League football many of the clubs have been forward thinking in their infrastructure arrangements.
Where does your club rank in terms of its facilities, and where can it improve?
Let’s take a look at Wellington Phoenix FC.
Current Set Up
Wellington Phoenix are currently served by a number of different facilities. The ALM and ALW teams train at the New Zealand Campus of Innovation and Sport (NZCIS). The Youth teams play and train at the Ricoh Sports Centre. The ALM team plays their games at the Wellington Regional Stadium and the ALW team plays their games at Jerry Collins Stadium.
History of Set Up
The Wellington ALM side has always played out of Wellington Regional Stadium however have played home games across New Zealand. The club formally trained at Newton Park before moving to Martin Luckie Park. The club did have to train in Wollongong during the COVID years before returning to New Zealand with new facilities at the NZCIS.
The Wellington Reserves (analogue to A-League club NPL sides) formally competed against NZ National Clubs in a separate competition between 2010-2013 before being admitted to the regular national competition in 2014. A change in competition again in 2021 saw the team compete under the banner of Lower Hutt, and again in 2022 the reserves were elevated to national competition under their own name. During that time, the team used a number of venues including Newton Park Athletics Centre, David Farrington Park, Porirua Park, and finally Fraser Park.
The ALW side has the odd experience of beginning in Wollongong, due to COVID restrictions during their establishment in 2021. In their first New Zealand based season the team played the majority of its games at Wellington Regional Stadium, before moving its primarily to Jerry Collins Stadium for the most recent season.
Assessment of Set Up, Gaps and Opportunities
Wellington enjoy state of the art facilities for their ALW and ALM teams. They have also established a solid youth base at Fraser Park. It appears to allow for the best of both worlds, although the club clearly lacks a central point of focus, especially when you consider number of facilities used inclusive of match day venues.
There exists a big opportunity for club development if the Nix could secure a facility to call their own. The club could still allow for administration and senior teams to training at the NZCIS, but a new facility could provide a more central point of focus if it included:
- A number of pitches for Youth and Reserves training
- An administration building for fan events and community outreach
- A show pitch with a reasonable capacity (4,000) to host ALW and Reserves games
Considering the goodwill of the team within the city, this is possible. There were plans drawn up for a fully integrated facility in 2012 when the club was threatened with removal from the league, however today there appears to be little appetite to create such a new facility.
Notes and considerations
It would be good to see the Phoenix be more ambition with their club development but it appears the current arrangements meet all their needs. Perhaps the introduction of Auckland will change this dynamic, but only time will tell.
Ratings based on future set up
Overall Ranking: 7th out of 12
Overall Rating: C+
Wellington enjoy facilities that serve all their needs. The large facilities footprint is not in line with best practice, but considering that the club has shown a strong Youth pipeline, good on field performances and even a slight uptick in crowds, the current arrangements are working well.
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