Phoenix find another ‘home’

The Wellington Phoenix are in talks to play a ‘home’ match in Canberra this season.

The fixture has not been confirmed, despite the start of the season being only 10 days away, but it would see the Phoenix take on the Western Sydney Wanderers at GIO Stadium on January 13.

Negotiations are understood to have been ongoing for some time without an agreement being reached. As such, Phoenix general manager David Dome was unable to comment on the matter.

The match is currently listed on the Phoenix website to be played at Westpac Stadium, but the stadium’s website does not have a listing for that day. A Phoenix spokesman said the venue for the fixture was yet to be finalised.

‘‘Negotiations have happened with several venues, but nothing has been confirmed,’’ he said.

If it was not played in Canberra, it would be played in New Zealand rather than another Australian venue.

When the Hyundai A-League draw was announced in June, the club said ‘‘at least 10 games will be played at Westpac Stadium this season, with 1 or 2 home games to be hosted elsewhere, the specific dates of which are yet to be confirmed’’.

Their match against the Newcastle Jets on March 17 will be played at QBE Stadium in Auckland, but fans, who pay up to $299 for season tickets for the 13 home games this season, would have expected the one or two other home-away-from-home games to at least be within New Zealand. The club has given no indication that the fixture could be played in Australia.