KEY POINTS:
The Wellington Phoenix are set to release more players and are interested in signing Troy Hearfield, who is in dispute with the Newcastle Jets.
Wellington have already released Royce Brownlie and Steven O'Dor, on top of not re-signing Ahmad Elrich, Felipe and Kristian Rees.
Leo Bertos, Andrew Durante, John McKain and Leilei Gao have been signed and, while the club are still looking for a striker and right back, others could be on the menu.
"We will be releasing some more players," Phoenix chief executive Tony Pignata said. "If we can come to an agreement with the players, definitely.
"They need to weigh up whether they are going to play much next season [if they stay] or whether they should cut their losses and look for other opportunities.
"It's not nice but we need to build the squad and we need some space."
Pignata is hopeful Australian striker Joel Porter, currently with English League One side Hartlepool, will sign.
Hearfield, a 20-year-old attacking midfielder sought and was granted a release from Newcastle. It's understood his agent received two text messages from coach Gary van Egmond agreeing to the release but van Egmond reneged on this only 90 minutes after the second confirmation when he failed to sign former Phoenix midfielder Elrich. The matter will be resolved at a tribunal hearing.
Hearfield, an Australian under-23 representative, played 14 times for champions Newcastle last season.
Last year's club captain Ross Aloisi and Auckland City skipper Ben Sigmund remain other possibilities.
Pignata also wants the club to have a team in the new National Youth League for 16 to 21-year-olds starting in August and is prepared to base the youth side in Canberra to gain the approval of the Football Federation of Australia.
All seven Australian-based A-League clubs will play in the new competition but Wellington missed out on the basis the FFA didn't want to pay for the development of New Zealand's youth.
Pignata is adamant, though, the Phoenix need to be involved to remain competitive and believes Canberra would provide the solution.
The coaching staff and 10 Australian youngsters would be based in the Australian capital. The team would be supplemented by Wellington-based players, including four over-age squad players.
Canberra's Capital Football support the proposal.
"We hope we are accepted because we are an A-League club based in Wellington," Pignata said.
