Wellington Phoenix host Newcastle Jets on Saturday in a meeting between two clubs vying for qualification to the Finals series.

The Nix lie fifth with just eight games of the regular season left while Newcastle are one point behind but narrowly outside of the six playoff spots.

Match preview

Ufuk Talay's side snatched a point against Central Coast Mariners last weekend in the fourth minute of stoppage time thanks to Oskar Zawada's pirouetting back heel, the Pole's 10th goal of the season.

The Phoenix have endured a gruelling sequence of four away games in February, picking up four points from the final two matches of this stretch before jetting back to New Zealand to prepare for Newcastle's visit.

Fans of the Wellington-based outfit will be thrilled to have their side back home given the deluge of goals at both ends that accompanies most matches at Sky Stadium - only the home outings of league-leading Melbourne City have seen more goals than those involving the Phoenix in New Zealand, which average 3.7 per game.

Talay's side have not kept a clean sheet at home all season, shipping the second-most goals in front of their own support - although, the Nix oddly boast a league-high three shutouts on the road.

Newcastle had a six-match unbeaten streak halted by reigning A-League champions Western United last weekend, losing 3-1 at home after failing to recover from Noah Botic's first-half brace.

The Jets have not lost a league match on the road since Macarthur beat them 2-0 on the second weekend of January but they are the division's joint-lowest scorers away from home, netting just seven league goals on their travels this season.

One of those rare strikes came in the club's most recent away trip, with Trent Buhagiar scoring eight minutes into what turned out to be the longest match in A-League history as lightning strikes forced delays of more than two hours during the middle of Newcastle's 1-0 win over Macarthur a fortnight ago.

Regardless of the venue, the Jets have attempted the fewest shots in the A-League this term and are heavily reliant on the Georgian forward Beka Mikeltadze to take and score these sporadic efforts.

This will be an intriguing clash of efficiency as the Phoenix boast the best conversion rate in the A-League, converting 12% of their shots this season, while Newcastle goalkeeper Jack Duncan has the highest save rate in the division, rebuffing 80% of the efforts fired his way.

Team News

Talay can once again turn to Callan Elliot after the first-choice right-back served his suspension against the Mariners last weekend.

There is little chance of displacing top scorer Zawada but the impending return of Kosta Barbarouses could give Talay another forward option if the 33-year-old striker returns from a hamstring problem this Saturday as expected.

Midfielder Clayton Lewis is set for a lengthier spell on the sidelines while he recovers from a fractured kneecap which he played with for 20 minutes after suffering the injury against the Mariners.

Reno Piscopo has not turned out for the Jets since stuffing a sumptuous equaliser into the top corner against Perth Glory at the start of February, missing the last three matches with an adductor problem he picked up during the warm-up for the home clash against Melbourne Victory.

Both Mikeltadze and Brandon O'Neill are one booking away from suspension for the Jets however the canny pair have been on the brink of a ban for months, carefully avoiding another booking during this time.

Wellington Phoenix possible starting lineup:
Sail; Elliot, Wootton, Laws, Sutton; Sasse, Rufer, Ugarkovic, Old; Ball, Zawada

Newcastle Jets possible starting lineup:
Duncan; Hoffman, Jenkinson, Jurman, Ingham; Buhagiar, Thurgate, Al-Taay, Sotirio; Mikeltadze, Grozos

We say: Wellington Phoenix 1-0 Newcastle Jets

Despite the goal-laden reputation of Sky Stadium, Saturday's lunchtime match may be a cagey affair as two direct rivals in a fiercely competitive race for the playoff spots meet with the Phoenix, back on home soil for the first time since January, boasting a slight edge against this shot-shy Jets side.


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