Navy Blues face stern test
AUCKLAND, New Zealand - The Navy Blues Stirling Sports minor premiership charge faces a stern test when the Wellington Phoenix U-20 pay a visit to Kiwitea Street on Sunday.
The Oceania champions were beaten 2-1 by Hawke's Bay United last week and languish in fifth place - their lowest placing in the campaign so far - and with six matches left to get their domestic season back on an even keel.
Scoring goals has been the biggest issue so far for Ramon Tribulietx's team and its a factor the 44-year-old coach isn't dodging.
"It’s been a period of mixed results for us of late. We’ve competed very well on the international stage with a decent showing in the match with Kashima Antlers in the FIFA Club World Cup and of course winning the Nike Lunar New Year Cup where we had two 1-0 wins over FC Seoul and Kitchee SC.
"These are exciting competitions to be part of but we have to put those results into perspective because we’ve produced some average results in the Stirling Sports Premiership.
"Nobody goes out looking to achieve these types of results but things happen in life for a reason and we are working hard to understand what those reasons are behind our domestic form.
"Last week we lost 2-1 to Hawke’s Bay United in a game where we started very well and restricted them to just two chances in the first half. But we conceded two second half goals from a similarly small number of chances and this is something we need to both understand why it happens and quickly resolve," he said.
Wellington Phoenix U-20 started the season with a bang knocking over defending champions Team Wellington 2-1 and Auckland City FC 1-0.
They sit in seventh spot but a win could propel them back into the chase for a top four finish.
Tribulietx is wary of a side that has beaten the Navy Blues twice in recent times.
"The Wellington Phoenix U-20 are a very talented squad of players and can be unpredictable as they have a lot of youngsters that are capable of very good things especially in the attacking third and they’re also a difficult opponent to gauge when you factor in their capacity to include a variety of good quality first team players.
"For the way they play, transition could be a key part in the game as it was when we met Andy Hedge’s team last year.
"Our focus must be firmly on the Stirling Sports Premiership and the nuances that come with it. We need to reacquaint ourselves with the way the game is played here and we need to be much better defensively than we have in our last two domestic matches particularly when we deal with the high number of crosses into the penalty area that are a big part of the way the game is played," he said.
The match kicks off at 4.35pm NZST at Kiwitea Street on Sunday 12 February, 2017.
Ends
Match Details
Stirling Sports Premiership
Sunday 12 February 2017
Auckland City FC v Wellington Phoenix U-20
Kiwitea Street, Sandringham
Kick-off: 4.35pm NZST
#ACvWP
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Player Profiles
Table
| Position | P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | AC | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 3 | 15 |
| 2 |  | WS | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 12 |
| 3 |  | BU | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 5 | 9 |
| 4 |  | BO | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 9 |
| 5 |  | MN | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 5 | 7 |
| 6 |  | AU | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 6 |
| 7 |  | ES | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 6 |
| 8 |  | TC | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 11 | 3 |
| 9 |  | MU | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 16 | 3 |
| 10 |  | WR | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 2 |
| 11 |  | HW | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 12 | 1 |
| 12 |  | EB | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 10 | 0 |
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