KEY POINTS:
A suspension to Wellington Phoenix soccer captain Andrew Durante gives defender Jon McKain an opportunity to lead the side to an A-League pre-season cup final victory tonight.
Regular skipper Durante was suspended after picking up two yellow cards in the win against Sydney FC at the weekend.
Former Socceroo McKain was more than happy to step in against the Melbourne Victory tonight at Wellington's Westpac Stadium and said the team were on a high.
"Obviously it was an unfortunate situation for Andrew last weekend but it's a big honour for me to lead this club out in a final and in front of our fans - it doesn't get much better than that," he said.
The club remain focused on their A-League season opener against the Queensland Roar on August 17, but the Phoenix are nevertheless excited about their pre-season finale.
To get there, the Phoenix headed off three teams that featured in last season's A-League playoffs. They included a win against the Central Coast Mariners and a draw against the Roar. The pre-season final berth was courtesy of a come-from-behind 3-2 win against glamour side Sydney FC in Wollongong.
McKain said the Phoenix were fired up by their unbeaten run through the group stage.
"We went into the pre-season cup with an attitude around getting some quality games under our belts.
"But the further we went we started thinking, 'Hang on, we can go somewhere and maybe have a shot at winning this.'
"Now we're in the final, we want to win it. The feeling in the change room and at training is just unbelievable," McKain said.
The match will be the first appearance by any New Zealand club in an Australasian football competition final.
"For a club that's been around less than 18 months it's a pretty significant achievement," said head coach Ricki Herbert.
"We haven't changed how we've gone about things in pre-season, we've covered all the bases and now we're in a final.
"Melbourne are bringing a good side and it'll be great for our fans to see another match at the Ring of Fire. To have the final at home is unique and that's very positive for the club."
- NZPA
