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Speaker 1: You're listening to the Weekend Sport Podcast with Jason Vine

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Speaker 1: from News Talk ZBB.

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Speaker 2: Phoenix back home for the first time this season in

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Speaker 2: the A League. They have the Brisbane Raw kickoff just

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Speaker 2: over half an hour away at sky Stadium. Their captain

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Speaker 2: is Alex Ruferm and he joins me now on News

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Speaker 2: Talk ZIBB. Alex, how thrilled are you to be back

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Speaker 2: at home in front of your home fans?

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Speaker 3: Of course, Look, we're really excited and looking forward to

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Speaker 3: the game.

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Speaker 2: How much is on the mind that you want to

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Speaker 2: repay the faith of the fans. So what was a

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Speaker 2: tough season at home last year? Just the one win?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, look coming we've we're spoken about that and we

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Speaker 3: want to make sky Stadium our fortress again. And like

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Speaker 3: you said, the repay the safe that the funds have

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Speaker 3: shown us and give him someone the smile about.

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Speaker 2: How do you go about rebuilding that?

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Speaker 3: I think we need to make sure that we make

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Speaker 3: it a fortress and make it really really tough to

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Speaker 3: tough for teams to come here and then play and

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Speaker 3: attacking aggressive style of football, which we have been doing.

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Speaker 3: And I think you know, the last game in per

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Speaker 3: showed that note that we started slowly and we were

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Speaker 3: turned down. The boys never gave up and we fought

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Speaker 3: back from Turner and then got a decent result.

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Speaker 2: How pleased were you with that character to earn a

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Speaker 2: point last week, as you say, turnel down to get

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Speaker 2: a too two draw.

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Speaker 3: Oh, look, extremely happy. Anyone who's done that trip knows

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Speaker 3: how difficult it is, and you know they're a good team.

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Speaker 3: Obviously there's time difference, but look, we we didn't worry

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Speaker 3: about those things that we couldn't control. We worried about

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Speaker 3: ourselves and like I said, really really happy and I'm

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Speaker 3: really proud of the team with the way we fought

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Speaker 3: back and got back into the game.

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Speaker 2: As captain of this team, has obviously been some changes,

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Speaker 2: as there are after every A league season, but changes,

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Speaker 2: you know, imports, players coming in from different cultures. How

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Speaker 2: much leadership do you have to shot at the start

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Speaker 2: of each season to get these players and assimilate them

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Speaker 2: into the Phoenix environment.

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Speaker 3: Oh, look, we've got a very welcoming environment. You know.

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Speaker 3: Obviously when they come in, you sit them down, you

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Speaker 3: talk to them, you get to know them a little bit,

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Speaker 3: and obviously throughout pre season you learn about them more

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Speaker 3: and you you know, start to build connections and then

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Speaker 3: from there it's just about showing them every day and

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Speaker 3: making sure they feel comfortable to express themselves on and

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Speaker 3: off the field.

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Speaker 2: And obviously got some some quality imports. We saw that

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Speaker 2: last week that felt like they slaughtered them pretty quickly

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Speaker 2: into the team.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, exactly. Look, that's what you want. You want your

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Speaker 3: especially your foreign players to settle quickly and perform well.

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Speaker 3: And all of them did that, you know, also the

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Speaker 3: all the Kiwi players as well, and all the new

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Speaker 3: Ossie imports as well that have come in. Everyone settled

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Speaker 3: nicely and everyone you know, showed what they're are, what

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Speaker 3: they can do.

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Speaker 2: What do you expect from the rule this afternoon?

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Speaker 3: Oh, look, they'll be very very aggressive. We've seen that

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Speaker 3: they're a good team. The coach is also a good

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Speaker 3: coach from Europe, so he's got them playing in an

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Speaker 3: aggressive way. So we need to make sure we match

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Speaker 3: that and then play our game.

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Speaker 2: Do you get this? Since that you know this, this

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Speaker 2: competition looks pretty even. I know we're only one and

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Speaker 2: a bit runs through, but it feels like it's a

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Speaker 2: pretty even competition this year.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, it look like you said it is. It is

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Speaker 3: early in the in the season to start obviously making

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Speaker 3: comparisons and looking at other teams. But I do think

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Speaker 3: it's going to be close. And I think after you know,

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Speaker 3: first four to six games, you kind of start to

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Speaker 3: see a little bit more. But at the moment, look,

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Speaker 3: it looks very, very tight, and it's it's close and

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Speaker 3: looks like it's going to be a tough, tough season

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Speaker 3: for for every team.

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Speaker 2: We saw the team play last week with a pretty

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Speaker 2: high defensive line. How much of a mindset change has

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Speaker 2: that been through the preseason and last week getting used

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Speaker 2: to that style?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, Look, we worked on it all preseason. I wouldn't

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Speaker 3: say it's a mindset change. I'd just say it's more

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Speaker 3: of a tactical change. I think, you know, the players

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Speaker 3: have adapted well to it, and you know, now our

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Speaker 3: mindset is we need to make sure that we do

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Speaker 3: it well, we train well during the week, and make

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Speaker 3: sure that we we're smart enough to know when to

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Speaker 3: do it and when not to do it. But look,

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Speaker 3: it was really positive. It did cause us problems at

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Speaker 3: the start of the game. I think there was a

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Speaker 3: few teething issues that you know, first game. It's obviously

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Speaker 3: a little bit of pressure, and it took us time

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Speaker 3: to adapt, but once we did, I thought it was good.

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Speaker 2: How much does that take confidence that it is the

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Speaker 2: right style and I guess patients that it is going

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Speaker 2: to work and be the style that is going to

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Speaker 2: deliver results of this team.

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Speaker 3: Look, we have to believe in every player. Does we

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Speaker 3: believe in the coach, We believe in each other, and

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Speaker 3: that's the most important thing. These things do take time.

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Speaker 3: It's not something that you can you know, perfect overnight

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Speaker 3: per se. But look, like I said, we believe in

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Speaker 3: the system, we believe in each other, we believe in

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Speaker 3: the coach and the staff, and you know, we're in

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Speaker 3: a positive heading in a positive direction.

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Speaker 2: And maintaining position comes with its rewards as well. It

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Speaker 2: can frustrate the opposition. I think last week we had

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Speaker 2: seventy percent position, So you know, it does have obviously

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Speaker 2: benefits in terms of just you know, creating a little

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Speaker 2: bit of frustrating for the team that's having to play

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Speaker 2: up against it.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, exactly. Look, we dominated the game, you know, with

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Speaker 3: the ball, obviously, but I think the funny thing is

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Speaker 3: is that the first half we actually weren't that great

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Speaker 3: with the ball. So there's still areas to improve and

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Speaker 3: I think once we really find out and figure out

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Speaker 3: you know, where to hurt teams will be much more

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Speaker 3: effective and create more.

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Speaker 2: Chances and once you missage. Finally, Alex rufer to the

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Speaker 2: Phoenix fans and the capital is they obviously had a

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Speaker 2: frustrating season last year, as we touched on before, but

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Speaker 2: to get them along and then buying tickets and seeing

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Speaker 2: you guys in action this afternoon and for your home

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Speaker 2: games over the next few weeks as well, just.

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Speaker 3: To support us like they always have. They're extra man.

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Speaker 3: I believe we've got the best fans in the league.

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Speaker 3: You know, the other Fever are an amazing force and

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Speaker 3: like I said, when they're there in full force, loud

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Speaker 3: and proud, it makes all the difference for us. So

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Speaker 3: get behind the lads, you know, be as loud as

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Speaker 3: possible and enjoy the game.

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Speaker 2: Good man, Hey Alex wis you the best of luck

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Speaker 2: this afternoon. Appreciate your time on the news talks.

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Speaker 3: Big awesome mane, thank you.

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Speaker 2: Thank you. Alex Royfer the Phoenix in action this afternoon

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Speaker 2: three o'clock at Sky Stadium. They played the Brisbane rule

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Speaker 2: one home win last year.

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Speaker 1: For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine. Listen live

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Speaker 1: to news talks at B weekends from midday, or follow

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