(adds Pignata quotes)

By Daniel Gilhooly of NZPA

Wellington, Feb 22 NZPA - Wellington has confirmed its status as the capital of New Zealand soccer and a deathbed for visiting A-League teams in the eyes of Wellington Phoenix coach Ricki Herbert.

In the wake of last night's playoff defeat of the Perth Glory, Herbert expressed gratitude to the club record crowd at Westpac Stadium of 24,500 whose deafening support made life distinctly uncomfortable for the visitors. He called on greater numbers again for the minor semifinal against Newcastle on March 7.

Herbert said the atmosphere after the Phoenix won a penalty shootout reminded him of last November's World Cup qualifying match at the same venue, when a sold-out crowd roared New Zealand to victory over Bahrain.

"Thirty two thousand got the national team over the line, 25,000 did it for the Phoenix," Herbert said.

"I can't speak enough for Wellington in general. At the end of the day, this is where football is about. I'm not sure you can talk about anywhere else in the country, I just don't think it's evolved like that.

"No doubt there were a lot of people from around the country who turned up today. They have two weeks now to buy tickets. I think the momentum will go on. I'll be surprised if we don't have more than 24,000."

Herbert compared the crowd in Wellington to the 4109 who watched the equivalent playoff match on the Gold Coast on Saturday, where Gold Coast United bowed out to Newcastle, also in a penalty shootout.

"It's not a hard one to look at, is it?" a smiling Herbert said.

The Phoenix are unbeaten at home for 18 matches and Perth coach Dave Mitchell admitted the crowd gave the Wellington club a considerable advantage.

The penalty shootout which -- by accident or design -- took place in front of the raucous "Yellow Fever" block of supporters was a daunting experience for his players, each of whom was subjected to chanting and pointing at as they made the long walk to the penalty spot.

"If they build on that crowd they've got, they've got a fantastic chance again," Mitchell said of the Phoenix's prospects against Newcastle.

"Newcastle won't be easy and it's a finals game again. But I think the travel and the crowd's a big factor here. It's a good crowd you have, they're very vocal and that's good."

The previous crowd record for the Phoenix in Wellington was the 18,345 who watched them play Adelaide in November 2007 -- one night before the exhibition game involving soccer superstar David Beckham.

That figure was surpassed when the club took a home match to Christchurch last month and 19,255 watched them down Adelaide 1-0 at AMI Stadium.

The Newcastle match will be the last at home for the Phoenix this season. If successful they will cross the Tasman to face the loser of the two-leg playoff between Sydney and Melbourne. The winners will then advance to the grand final on March 20.

The only unfortunate news for the Phoenix is that they receive no financial benefit for hosting playoff matches, regardless of ticket sales. All playoff match profits are claimed by Football Federation Australia (FFA).

Phoenix chief executive said the lack of revenue from their large crowds was a "sore point" with owner Terry Serepisos but one they were forced to accept.

"They (FFA) would have made some good revenue and they'll make some good revenue again," Pignata told Radio Sport.

"That's the way it is and we don't get anything."

The future of the Phoenix is still in doubt following comments late last year by Asian Football Confederation boss Mohamed bin Hammam, who stated the A-League should be a 100 percent "Asian entity", thus precluding a team from New Zealand, which comes under the Oceania Federation umbrella.

Pignata hoped the growing crowd base in Wellington would convince the FFA of the club's value to the A-League.

"How can it not?" Pignata said.

"It adds some weight, whether it can get us across the line, I hope it does. Surely we're an integral part of the A-League and we're really starting to stamp our name on the league."

Meanwhile, the news was better today for Phoenix supporters, many of whom were stung with parking tickets near the ground during the match. Wellington City Council parking attendants went on a ticket-issuing spree while supporters watched the match stretch on for another hour as extra time and the penalty shootout unfolded.

Wellington mayor Kerry Prendergast today said the fines would all be waived.

NZPA WGT dg gt