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Sport Nation
LISTEN: Jacob Spoonley on both New Zealand A-League sides getting a point on the board
Sport Nation • October 21st, 2025 8:49 am
The opening round of the 2025/26 A-League Men season is in the books, with both Auckland FC and the Wellington Phoenix commencing their campaigns with a draw.
Both sides come back to New Zealand with points on the table with the Phoenix securing a 2-2 draw against the Perth Glory, unable to complete the comeback after being down 2-nil within the opening 26 minutes. Meanwhile, Auckland FC were held scoreless in a tense stalemate with Melbourne Victory.
Former New Zealand goalkeeper, now Sky Sport football analyst, Jacob Spoonley told Sport Nation Mornings that Kiwi football fans should be prepared to witness some exciting football this A-League season.
Both the Phoenix and Auckland FC lost key players during the offseason, so each side has had to restructure for the 2025-26 campaign said Spoonley.
“The Phoenix are looking interesting, wholesale changes, wholesale adaptions, the playing style is different…
“If you look at how they are playing it is ambitious, it’s almost like they’re forcing themselves to be aggressive, there's a lot of emphasis on attack and control,” Spoonley said about the Phoenix.
And although fresh faces are donning the blue and black of Auckland FC this year, their foundation remains the same.
“The DNA of this Auckland side is that they are great at delivery, and we knew that about them last year,
“They've doubled down on this approach of functional football,” said Spoonley.
“I think what we saw there on Saturday is a lot of what we saw last season from Steve Corica, which is a side that's going to be built on the sense of solidity, organisation, and structure.”
Both Auckland and Wellington have home games this weekend, with the Black Knights taking on the Western Sydney Wanderers on Saturday at 5pm, and the Phoenix playing the Brisbane Roar at 3pm on Sunday.
Listen to the full interview below:
