The rivalry between Auckland and Wellington Phoenix FC – dubbed the 'Kiwi Clásico' by media, in allusion to El Clásico – saw its first match end in victory for Auckland on November 2, 2024. The game occurred at Sky Stadium. Alex Paulsen, who starred in goal for Wellington the season prior, kept a clean sheet for his new Auckland side. However, it was the Wellington goalkeeper Josh Oluwayemi who caught headlines. His mistimed pass in the dying minutes only found the feet of Jake Brimmer, who slotted it past to take Auckland into a late lead. Brimmer then scored his double in the 97th minute; a tap-in on the receiving end of a mazy Luis Toomey run.[1]
The reverse fixture took place at Mount Smart Stadium, on a sunny December 7th afternoon. The build-up had been fiery: fuelled by comments from Wellington manager Giancarlo Italiano delegating Auckland's early success to luck. Steve Corica used this discourse, which he referred to as 'disrespectful', as motivation for his players. Auckland got ahead by two goals; courtesy of an unfortunate Isaac Hughes header into his own net and a Nando Pijnaker set-piece nod. Kosta Barbarouses scored late to give the travelling Wellington crowd hope, but the final whistle blew at 2–1.[2]
Players
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Updated to match(es) played on 1 February 2025. Source: A-Leagues Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) goals scored; 4) wins; 5) head-to-head results; 5a) head-to-head points; 5b) head-to-head goal difference; 6) Fair Play points; 7) away goal difference; 8) away goals per match; 9) home goal difference; 10) home goals per match; 11) toss of a coin in an event of a tie of two clubs.[23] Notes:
^ abThe top two teams enter the finals series at the semi-finals, while the teams ranked third to sixth enter the finals series at the elimination-finals.
Results summary
Overall
Home
Away
Pld
W
D
L
GF
GA
GD
Pts
W
D
L
GF
GA
GD
W
D
L
GF
GA
GD
15
10
3
2
24
12
+12
33
6
1
1
12
6
+6
4
2
1
12
6
+6
Last updated: 1 February 2025.
Source: Ultimate A-League
Away figures include Auckland FC's 1–0 win on neutral ground in Unite Round against Macarthur FC on 24 November 2024.
Updated to match(es) played on 1 February 2025. Source: Ultimate A-League A = Away; H = Home; N = Neutral; B = Bye; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss; X = Bye
Includes all competitions. The list is sorted by squad number when total clean sheets are equal. Numbers in parentheses represent games where both goalkeepers participated and both kept a clean sheet; the number in parentheses is awarded to the goalkeeper who was substituted on, whilst a full clean sheet is awarded to the goalkeeper who was on the field at the start of play. Goalkeepers with no clean sheets not included in the list.
