There was another twist in the ongoing Wellington Phoenix license extension saga yesterday.
Outgoing FFA chairman Frank Lowy made the suggestion that in order to stay relevant and stay in the A-League, the Phoenix needed to represent the entire country - not just Wellington - and should therefore re-brand to become the New Zealand Phoenix.
Lowy's CEO David Gallop has spoken of the "metrics" which would make them sit up and take notice. Things like crowds, memberships and TV ratings.
Changing the name of the club to the New Zealand Phoenix won't help increase those things. What will is engagement; the Phoenix engaging with its community. And they've certainly done that in the last fortnight.
We heard yesterday that club memberships have reached record levels. Scarf Wellington has been massive with Phoenix scarves everywhere around the city. A very big crowd is expected on Friday night for the game against Adelaide.