Karl Dodd's suspension-enforced absence has resulted in only one change for the Phoenix for Friday's prospective epic against Melbourne's Victory in the Capital.

Dodd will sit out one game after picking up his fifth yellow card when beating the Newcastle Jets last weekend.

However, Dodd's misfortune has been Andrew Durante's good luck as he comes into the side to play his 50th Hyundai A-League game.

Coach Ricki Herbert said: "It's a straight swap with Andrew for Karl and the balance of the team remains the same.

"Jeremy Christie will come in on the bench and he'll offer us some variety in the midfield.

"Consistency is again the key, it certainly has been for the past seven weeks, and our form has been really good."

Phoenix have trawled 13 points in seven rounds, including the club's first successive victories and they got into Friday's game with a chance for a hat-trick of wins.

"Melbourne are also in good form and they've had three [wins] on the bounce," Herbert said.

"But there's plenty of evidence to suggest they're beatable and that's what we'll be working toward."

Improving the quality of ball to players at the front is Herbert's demand from the game.

Herbert said: "It's not a case of changing things too much, but it's important we deliver the ball better into critical areas. The players understand, and you don't have to be a rocket scientist to realise it, that there are places the ball has to be delivered into and we know we can tidy that area up."

An added note of spice is that the game will be the first time Brazilian star Fred has faced his former team.

Herbert said he thought it would be a good game for Fred.

"This will be only his second match for us but he's making progress every week.

"He's trained well and has become a lot more familiar with the guys around him, so that can only benefit us.

“It’s going to be great to have a Friday night game. We’ve produced the results and hopefully we can get a few more fans along as well.

“Wellington as a city is perfect for Friday night fixtures. It’s a sporting centre and people flow from the centre of the city down to Westpac Stadium on the waterfront. From the position of attracting the crowds Friday night will be beneficial for us, and that’s what we saw last season."



“We’ve come off back-to-back wins and we’re climbing up the table, so hopefully the fans will come out in force to support us. Irrespective of the size of the crowd, we always get a huge boost from our fans – and I firmly believe we’ve got the best in the league – but we need more to come to the games.”