Anticipation has turned to a touch of anxiety at Wellington Phoenix, just four days before the debut of their women's team in Australia.
The club has voiced its concerns that the women's 'Nix side look like they’ll play their first ever A-League game without a sponsor.
The team have been officially welcomed into Wollongong and they're raring to go.
"We are very excited to get going," says teenage midfielder Te Reremoana Walker. "All the girls are buzzing."
Says goalkeeper Lily Alfeld: "Everyone's just excited to step across that line and get on the pitch."
But back on this side of the Tasman, there's a sense the team has been let down off the pitch.
"As of today, we don't have a single corporate partner for the women's team," says club general manager David Dome.
While the team will make history when they run out against the Western Sydney Wanderers on Friday, they'll do so without a sponsor on the front of their shirts.
"Hugely disappointing," says Dome, whose frustration comes at a time when women's football in New Zealand is at an all-time high, with the 2023 World Cup to be hosted here.
"A lot of people talk about gender equality and how they want to be a part of the solution, but don't want to come to the table," he says.
The Phoenix had a sponsor locked in, but the deal fell through, when a competitor was named as the league sponsor.
"They felt like there was a clash with another league sponsor," says Dome. "It was outside of our control."
The Government is encouraging anyone to throw their support behind the women's side.
"We have historically seen corporates reluctant to sponsor major women's sports team, but all over the world, audiences for women’s sport are increasing," says Sports Minister Grant Robertson.
That reluctance has the club crossing its fingers,
"Hopefully, we will get something over the line, but its certainly not a given at this stage," says Dome.
The club hopes the players can help woo financial support with a winning brand on the pitch.
