KEY POINTS:
Though no New Zealand players will play in Sunday's A-League grand final at Melbourne's Telstra Dome, there will still be a strong Kiwi connection in the Adelaide United camp.
Appointed to the all-encompassing role of director of football at the South Australian club about five weeks ago, former All Whites defender Glenn Dods was on the bench as Adelaide won through to the Hyundai A-League showpiece final with a tense penalty shootout win over Newcastle Jets at Hindmarsh Stadium on Sunday night.
He will accompany the team to Melbourne on Friday and again be on the bench as Adelaide try to upset the hotly favoured Melbourne Victory.
Formerly on the United board and their football committee and used by the club in his role as a physiotherapist, Dods was approached by the club to take on this key role.
"Primarily the role is until the end of this A-League campaign," said Dods from Adelaide yesterday just hours after the club had celebrated the dramatic win at Hindmarsh Stadium. "At that time, I will present a full report of activities on and off the field.
"They will then decide whether the role should continue. Indications are it is highly likely I will stay on. There is a lot of administrative and financial stuff involved. Getting the financial reporting right is important. As is player recruitment."
While he sees the new visa player rule as being detrimental to New Zealand players hoping to join Australian clubs, he does see it as being beneficial for the Kiwi team should they hold their place in the league.
"We have already re-signed some players and others are due to have their contracts looked at," said Dods. "We also hope to announce a big-name offshore signing in the next couple of weeks."
Dods, 49, was a member of the 1982 All Whites World Cup team playing 14 of the 18 matches in his 30-something international appearances. He moved to Adelaide at the end of 1979 and has been in the South Australian city since.
"After the World Cup, I played a bit of state and amateur league but since then I have been involved in other things like coaching, particularly at youth level, a real passion, as well as promoting tournaments involving big-name teams," said Dods.
Now, on the verge of the biggest day in domestic soccer in his adopted country, Dods said the club was looking forward to the challenge.
"We have grown since the disappointment of last season. We have close to the oldest squad in the league and getting through like this has, in some ways, made up for the disappointment of last season when we were clearly in front in winning the minor premiership but failed in the play-offs."
New Zealand would have had a connection in Sunday's final one way or the other had Newcastle won through.
All Whites midfielder Tim Brown played all 120 minutes of the preliminary final while veteran striker Vaughan Coveny again played off the bench, scoring the 74th-minute equaliser within minutes of replacing Milton Rodriquez. Carl Veart had given Adelaide the lead after 57 minutes.
While Coveny was the hero by getting the visitors back into the game, he was later the villain when, with scores locked 3-3 in the shootout, his attempt was saved by United goalkeeper Michael Beltrame as Adelaide went on to win the shootout 4-3 in a pulsating game that left many players on their knees at the end of extra time.
