Rudan vents after Sydney ‘home’ game
Wellington Phoenix coach Mark Rudan has condemned the club’s decision to take a home game to Australia after the controversial move to Campbelltown Stadium backfired on Saturday night.
Not only did the Phoenix lose 1-0 after Sydney FC striker Adam Le Fondre converted a secondhalf penalty in what was effectively a home game for the opposition, but they did so in front of a meagre crowd of just 5115.
It was the Phoenix’s third lowest home attendance of the season and came one week after attracting a record 23,648-crowd for their A-League match against Melbourne Victory at Eden Park in Auckland.
They also lost defender Dylan Fox to what Rudan fears could be a season-ending ankle injury.
‘‘I don’t think the club thought or had the confidence that we would have the season that we are having, at the start of the season when they made the decision,’’ Rudan said.
With Westpac Stadium unavailable due to a kapa haka festival, the Phoenix made the curious decision to move the round 20 fixture to Campbelltown, which is just a 40 minute drive from Sydney’s Jubilee Stadium home ground.
Rudan said he ‘‘made it quite clear’’ to the club that he was unhappy with the decision to relinquish home advantage when it was announced in December, adamant there was viable alternatives within New Zealand.
‘‘I said it better not come back to bite us,’’ he said.
‘‘We had almost 23,000 at Eden Park last week. We could have played there again today but like I said, I don’t think they have the trust or the confidence in my players and my coaching staff to have played and found an alternative in New Zealand because there were alternatives.’’
Rudan’s post-match vent comes during a time where his future at the Phoenix remains up in the air. The Australian has been heavily linked with a move to expansion club Western United despite having another year to run on his contract.
While Rudan revealed that he was ‘‘in discussions’’ with the Phoenix regarding his future, he also made it clear that standards must improve if he is to remain at the club beyond the current season.
‘‘Am I in discussions with the club? Yes, I am. Do I want the standards raised at the football club? Absolutely. Do I want to try and entice better players to this football club and improve the environment? Absolutely. The players deserve that, the club deserves that and the fans deserve that as well,’’ he said.
‘‘Do I want to vie for things every year? Yes. I’m pretty clear, I’m driven and I’m ambitious and they know what they are getting from me as well. I’ve made it pretty clear. Are discussions ongoing? Yes, they are. I don’t care what’s going on with the noise outside.
‘‘I’ve come in here to do a job and we can progress that but it’s a little bit bigger because we’ve affected the football club and we can affect the game now in New Zealand. The federation is coming together with our club and I think that’s also pretty positive but if they’re going to continue to wait and not make things happen . . . I’ve given them a deadline, I won’t tell you what it is but they know what is going on.
‘‘I’m giving them the opportunity to improve because, like I said, the fans and the players deserve this club to improve and not just sit on their backside and be another number.’’
Phoenix general manager David Dome was unavailable to comment.
At a glance
Sydney FC 1 (Adam Le Fondre pen 65’) Wellington Phoenix 0 HT: 0-0