And why not? The engaging 32-year-old striker has just signed a new two-year deal with the Wellington-based club and cited his relationship with coach Ricki Herbert and team-mates as a major reason for wanting to remain with the club.
He also has some unfinished business with the Phoenix - winning.
"I've said time and time again that we've got a great bunch of lads here," the former Crystal Palace striker told the Otago Daily Times yesterday.
"It is probably the best bunch of lads I've had the pleasure of playing with and I don't want to finish my career and look back and say, `What a great bunch of lads but we didn't actually win anything'.
"I've probably got another three or four years ahead of me and this is an important couple of years.
"I want to win things before I finish, and if I didn't think the club was geared up for that I wouldn't have stayed. But having spoken to Ricki, the chairman and some of the owners, I think we are definitely heading in the right direction."
The Phoenix has a big week ahead, starting with a match against the defending champion Brisbane Roar at Forsyth Barr Stadium tomorrow night. Then there is a trip to Australia to play the Melbourne Victory. All the travelling takes a toll and the trip to Dunedin is another night away from home.
"I understand the reason for bringing the game here, especially after the success of the pre-season game," Ifill said.
"But, if I'm honest, and I don't mean to be disrespectful to the Dunedin public because I will enjoy the game, but you can't beat the comforts of home and the record we've got at the Westpac Stadium. I don't think we should give that up to anybody."
Ifill also has some reservations about playing under the roof at Dunedin's new stadium.
"It is a weird kind of feeling. It is as though there is no air in there and the ball seems to move differently.
"You only need to look at the [Rugby] World Cup with Jonny Wilkinson missing six out of seven kicks in there.
"I like the stadium, though, and the atmosphere is amazing."
The Dunedin public showed up in droves with 15,000 turning up for the pre-season game against the Roar in August. The result was one-way traffic with the visiting side enjoying a comprehensive 5-1 win.
"You can't read much into pre-season results. They might read a lot into it because they've gone on a great run since and we've started slowly but picked up in the last few weeks."
Brisbane enjoyed an eight-game unbeaten run to start the season but has faltered over the last few weeks with a 2-0 loss to Sydney and a 2-1 loss to the Melbourne Heart.
The Phoenix has been buoyed by its 1-0 win against the Perth Glory but will go into the game missing some key players.
Defender Tony Lochhead is sidelined with an injury and striker Miorjan Pavlovic, who was red-carded in the closing moments on Saturday, will miss the game through suspension.
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