The Team Wellington Gazette
Match18 Nov 2026
Team Wellington through in the cup
A 3‑2 win over WaiBOP United, and the draw for the next round can be watched with some interest for once.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Sam Van Hattum keeps Team Wellington in it on his own
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Tempers go at Team Wellington
Steven Lustica was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Match21 Nov 2026
Whatever happens, Team Wellington do not lose
6 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.
The terraces23 Nov 2026
Team Wellington supporters have found a favourite in Stefan Smith
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Stefan Smith has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Match21 Nov 2026
Team Wellington see off Hawke's Bay United
Three points for Team Wellington, 2‑0 the final word against Hawke's Bay United in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Player ratings23 Nov 2026
One of those days for James Singh
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.47, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings23 Nov 2026
Stefan Smith was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.18. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
Player ratings23 Nov 2026
A masterclass from Simon Sullivan
Marked 8.11 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
In brief
- The terraces Team Wellington's travelling support get something back at Hawke's Bay United
- Squad James Lewis stays put
- Loan watch Oliver Reid counts the days