KEY POINTS:
If you believed some of the things said and written about Ross Aloisi in recent months, you might have a vision of him as football's Antichrist.
Crucified for his sending off and bitter after-match comments following his side's 6-0 hammering at the hand of Melbourne in February's A-League final, Adelaide stripped the captaincy from him and then cut him adrift. It was a bitter pill for a player who led them to the minor premiership in their first season - for which he was recognised as Player of the Year - and then to the grand final in only their second season.
He was hauled before a disciplinary hearing, along with two of his team-mates (Carl Veart said three blind mice could have done a better job than referee Mark Shield and his two assistants), and made to apologise for his actions.
Much like the Wellington Phoenix, however, Aloisi hopes he can resurrect his career in Wellington and, excuse the pun, rise from the ashes.
He's signed a one-year deal to play under Ricki Herbert, something that was greeted with equal measures of approval and derision by Phoenix fans. It's nothing new, because Aloisi has polarised opinion throughout his 18-year professional career.
One thing is certain, however: Herbert has recruited an experienced player who will deliver a hard edge to Wellington.
"Passion and a never-say-die attitude is what I will bring to this club," Aloisi says on the eve of relocating today from Adelaide to the nation's capital. "I demand a lot of myself and fight for any team I play with and I will expect other players to do the same."
Despite popular opinion, this fighting spirit has got Aloisi in less trouble than some might imagine.
He receives more than his fair share of yellow cards (eight in 2005-06 and six last season) but yellow cards are an occupational hazard for holding midfielders, particularly combative ones like Aloisi. His red in the grand final was his first in eight years.
"Most people in football know what type of player I am," he says. "I'm a very aggressive player and I play to win. I will do anything it takes to win.
"I've literally spilt blood on [Adelaide's] Hindmarsh Stadium. I've broken two ribs, had my thumb broken in four places, played with a broken nose and I also threw up for 10 seconds in the preliminary final against Newcastle. I've left a lot on that ground and it hurt not to finish my career there."
Even now, three months later, it's hard for Aloisi to forgive and forget. At 34, he was in the twilight of his career and probably intended to finish when his Adelaide contract expired at the end of next season.
A confidentiality agreement signed with the club when they parted company by "mutual consent" prevents him from opening up. But, much like the way he plays the game, Aloisi doesn't sidestep the issue.
"Everyone knows that when you're not allowed to talk, there's a lot to talk about," he says. "But let's just say I was very disappointed to leave. I loved the club and loved playing for them."
A statement released by Adelaide soon after dumping Aloisi implied the midfielder had retired from football.
"Absolutely not," he refutes. "Not for a second. I still want to achieve things. Whether this is my last year or not, I don't know. But I still have a lot to play for."
Although Aloisi dismisses the suggestion, there's probably a large part of him that wants to prove to Adelaide that they were wrong to get rid of him. There's probably another chunk that wants to prove to others that he's capable of leading Wellington to unprecedented success, despite the abject failure of both the Kingz and Knights.
He talks of making the playoffs with the club and even pushing for higher honours.
"It would probably be more special than [doing it] with Adelaide," he admits.
It didn't take much to get Aloisi to Wellington. Within 30 minutes of Adelaide announcing their decision to release their former skipper, Herbert started the chase for his man and less than a week later the deal was done.
Although Aloisi had offers from a couple of other A-League clubs, he told his agent to "do whatever it takes" to make the Phoenix deal work once he heard Herbert was in charge.
It's all a bit gushing but Aloisi says he signed with Wellington largely because of the All Whites coach and what he achieved with the Knights in five short games.
In many respects, Aloisi and Herbert couldn't have had more contrasting ends to last season's A-League.
Now, though, their fortunes are intertwined and Herbert will hope he was right to invite the Antichrist to join his band of disciples.
