Sydney Football Stadium won’t intimidate us – Wellington’s Herbert

Wellington Phoenix coach Ricki Herbert believes Sydney FC’s home ground advantage in tomorrow’s A-League Preliminary Final will not be too much of a factor.

Following the Phoenix’s courageous win over the Newcastle Jets on Sunday which saw some players return from international just days prior to the match, Herbert is confident his players are strong enough to overcome things such as a home advantage.

“I think last week was extremely positive given some of them coming back from Mexico and a couple of boys coming back from the Australian national team. If we we're going to fall over in a game that was it. But we didn’t. Those players really stepped up. They'll be freshened up this week and they'll come here and give everything," Herbert said in Melbourne on Thursday.

"Sydney is not really a daunting place to go, if I'm honest. I think they are a great supportive crowd, but it won't be intimidating or anything. I think we'll probably get a few of our fans across and they'll make a bit of noise. We know what to expect. We've had 100,000 at our last four games albeit they all supporting us."

And Herbert added that the Wellington players’ hunger will also play a big part in the match.

“It's not competition points on the line anymore it's just a football match. Somebody has to be out of it at the end of the day. I think that might just stand us in good stead. The players are really hungry, they want to turn around those three losses. I think it’s a little bit more in our court than theirs," he added.