After spending some time out of the competition, former Sydney FC star Blake Powell is back in the Hyundai A-League and returning to Allianz Stadium this Thursday night when his Wellington Phoenix squad take on the Sky Blues (kick off 8pm). Ahead of the match we caught up with the former Sky Blue to see how he’s settled in at the Phoenix and what memories he cherishes from his time at the harbour city club.
How pleased are you to be back in the A-League?
It’s really good to have football as a full time job again. I had a good time with APIA Leichhardt scoring some goals and getting my confidence up again but it’s good to be back and hopefully I can keep performing.
What’s it like at Wellington? How do you compare it to your time at Sydney FC?
Well first of all the weather is a bit different, it’s a bit colder at Wellington! Both clubs are very professional in the way they’re run and I can just say it’s pretty much the same, just a different country I guess.
What were you expecting when you joined the Phoenix?
I wasn’t expecting too much, I knew there was going to be a lot of hard work ahead of me so I was preparing for a bit of a challenge. My first challenge was trying to get into the squad each week, that was my number one target. Number two is to get into that starting eleven. I knew that that was ahead of me and I was looking forward to it.
Looking ahead to Thursday, how much are you looking forward to being back at Allianz Stadium?
Yeah it should be good to see some familiar faces again! Running on that pitch, down the tunnel, there’s a lot of good memories there and I’m looking forward to it.
There must be plenty of fond memories for you there, which ones stand out the most?
Scoring my first goal there, that was a big one from a Brett Emerton cross, I still remember it. Just playing with Alessandro Del Piero too that was a big one of mine.
Which of the boys are you most looking forward to seeing on Thursday? What will you say to them?
Just “hello, how you going? Haven’t seen you in a while! [laughs]. I’m looking forward to seeing a few of the boys like Busta [Rhyan Grant], Sebba [Seb Ryall], Matt Jurms, Vedran I was always very close with those guys.
What sort of match are you expecting?
I’m expecting a win!
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