Wellington Phoenix FC–Western United FC rivalry

The Wellington Phoenix FC–Western United FC rivalry is a rivalry between New Zealand club Wellington Phoenix and Victorian club Western United.

Wellington Phoenix FC–Western United FC rivalry
TeamsWellington Phoenix
Western United
First meetingWellington Phoenix 0–1 Western United
A-League
(13 October 2019)
Latest meetingWestern United 1–4 Wellington Phoenix
A-League Men
(9 April 2022)
Next meetingTBD
StadiumsSky Stadium (Wellington Phoenix)
GMHBA Stadium (Western United)
Statistics
Meetings total8
All-time seriesWellington Phoenix: 7
Drawn: 1
Western United: 1
Largest victoryWellington Phoenix 3–0 Western United
(22 May 2021)

History

Beginning of rivalry

Following the conclusion of the 2018–19 A-League season, Wellington Phoenix manager Mark Rudan was announced as the inaugural manager for expansion team Western United. In the following weeks, Rudan signed three Wellington Phoenix players to the club ahead of their inaugural season; club captain and record appearance holder Andrew Durante, reigning A-League Goalkeeper of the Year Filip Kurto, and Max Burgess. Speculation abounded that Rudan solicited these players during the previous season, while all were still contracted to the Wellington Phoenix. This created animosity between fans of Wellington Phoenix and Rudan, along with Western United themselves.[1]

Early matches

The first meeting between the two teams was an A-League match on 13 October 2019 in Western United's first competitive match. The match, played at Wellington's home ground at Sky Stadium, finished 1–0 to Western United via a goal by Besart Berisha; Durante, Kurto and Burgess all played.[2]

Results

Wellington Phoenix vs. Western United
Venue Date Competition Score Home goalscorers Away goalscorers Attendance
Sky Stadium 13 October 2019 A-League 0–1 Berisha 34' 8,254
21 February 2020 A-League 2–0 Cacace 29', Ball 90' 7,281
WIN Stadium 11 April 2021 A-League 3–2 Dávila 45' (pen.), Sotirio 53', Waine 90' Berisha 32' (pen.), Guarrotxena 56' 1,226
Sky Stadium 22 May 2021 A-League 3–0 Lewis 38', Piscopo 57', Hemed 63' 24,105
WIN Stadium 21 January 2022 A-League Men 2–1 Sandoval 16', Hooper 35' Lustica 90' 586

Western United vs. Wellington Phoenix
Venue Date Competition Score Home goalscorers Away goalscorers Attendance
Mars Stadium 28 December 2019 A-League 1–3 Diamanti 89' (pen.) Ball 41', McCowatt 55', Dávila 5,084
UTAS Stadium 22 April 2021 A-League 1–1 Wales 27' Waine 7' 2,528
GMHBA Stadium 7 December 2021 FFA Cup 0–1 Waine 35' 1,217
Morshead Park Staidum 9 April 2022 A-League Men 1–4 Lustica 54' Wootton 29', Sotirio 32', 63', Sandoval 45+2' 1,423

Fixture top scorers in the rivalry

Players in bold represent those who are currently playing for Wellington Phoenix or Western United

Rank Scorer Club(s) Goals
1 Jaushua Sotirio Wellington Phoenix 3
Ben Waine Wellington Phoenix
2 David Ball Wellington Phoenix 2
Besart Berisha Western United
Ulises Dávila Wellington Phoenix
Steven Lustica Western United
Gael Sandoval Wellington Pohenix

Summary of results
As of 9 April 2022.[3]
Competition Matches played Wellington wins Draws Western United wins Wellington goals Western United goals
League 8611187
FFA Cup 110010
Total 9711197

Players who have played for both clubs

Due to the rivalry between the clubs, four players have played for Wellington Phoenix and Western United since 2019. Statistics are sourced from ALeagueStats.com[4] and updated as of 12 February 2022.

Wellington Phoenix, then Western United
Name Pos Wellington Phoenix Western United
CareerAppsGoals CareerAppsGoals
Kwabena AppiahFW 2015–16171 201961
Filip KurtoGK 2018–19260 2019–21360
Max BurgessMF 2018–19230 2019–21256
Andrew DuranteDF 2008–192814 2019–21452

Highest attendances
  • Wellington Phoenix 3–0 Western United; 24,105 (22 May 2021); Sky Stadium (Wellington Phoenix home)
  • Wellington Phoenix 0–1 Western United; 8,254 (13 October 2019); Westpac Stadium (Wellington Phoenix home)
  • Wellington Phoenix 2–0 Western United; 7,281 (21 February 2020); Sky Stadium (Wellington Phoenix home)
  • Western United 1–3 Wellington Phoenix; 5,084 (28 December 2019); Mars Stadium (Western United home)
  • Western United 1–1 Wellington Phoenix; 2,528 (22 April 2021); UTAS Stadium (Western United home)

References
  1. "The Birth of a Rivalry: The Welly Nix vs Western United". theniche-cache.com.
  2. "Western United make history after winning start in Hyundai A-League". Western United FC. 13 October 2019.
  3. "Wellington Phoenix » Record against Western United". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  4. "Player Statistics". ALeagueStats.com. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
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