KEY POINTS:
Some time next week the light at the end of the A-League tunnel for a New Zealand franchise will either be switched off or allowed to blaze.
While not exactly euphoric with the late-season rally which still left the New Zealand Knights dangling at the foot of the table, the hardy fans and others felt they at last had something to savour ... And build on.
Deemed from the very early stages as a disaster waiting to happen, the Knights duly obliged.
Continuing down the same crazy path as their oft-lamented predecessor the Football Kingz, the Knights quickly showed out as a rag-tag mob of players tossed together and with many happy to pocket good money for simply turning up.
With no meaningful off-field direction, the Knights were always up against it.
The final straw coming with the failure to pay players wages and owners Octagon Sports subsequently having their licence pulled.
Only the determination by Football Federation Australia to keep the club in the fold saved complete embarrassment. Without that cash injection, already red faces would have been even redder.
That departed chairman Anthony Lee chose to high-tail it to Las Vegas and leave the FFA to sort out the mess was just another indictment on the club's shoddy administrative record.
It was to the players' credit that they rallied, accepted the FFA bailout and went to work.
In the last third of the season they turned in half-decent efforts, found much-needed confidence and responded to a player to the responsibility handed them by interim coach Ricki Herbert.
Led by old stagers Darren Bazeley (as captain) and Neil Emblen, and backed by solid performances from local players Mark Paston, Che Bunce and Noah Hickey, determined efforts from newcomers Dean Gordon and Steven O'Dor and flashes of their undoubted ability from Alen Marcina, Leilei Gao, Richard Johnston and Jonas Salley they showed an ability which was all-too-rarely seen through the first 14 (of 21) weeks of the season.
The end-of-season charge - taking points from five teams in the play-off mix - led Melbourne chairman Geoff Lord to throw his weight firmly behind their continued presence again pointing to the expat population in Australia who would support a successful New Zealand team.
That late-season rally earned them 12 points, double what they managed in the whole of the 2005-06 season. In that period they scored eight of their 13 goals for the season (compared with 15 in the previous season).
They conceded seven in those seven games with four in the disastrous 4-0 loss to Melbourne Victory, the game in which Herbert was forced to cobble together a team as players took their stance over non-payment of wages.
Overall, the Knights conceded 39 goals, eight fewer than last time but still nine more than Perth who finished one place and one point ahead of them on the table.
That was then. Attention now turns to the future.
Until the not-inconsiderable funding is in place and the on-going licence handed over, the uncertainty continues.
There have yet to be any real discussions with Herbert (as the prospective head coach) by anyone, even allowing that the three potential owners have expressed a commitment to pull him on board.
That will be the first step once the light turns green and must be immediately followed by player recruit-ment.
The New Zealand entity - and the Knights name will go out in the wash - has an advantage over other A-League clubs.
While Australian clubs are bound by Asian Confederation rules which decree no more than four visa players in the 23-man squad, ie 19 Australians and four recruited worldwide, the New Zealand team, the only A-League club not eligible to play in the Asian Nations Cup, has fewer restrictions.
They can recruit up to 19 players from New Zealand and Australia and another four worldwide.
In both cases, three players must be under 20 years of age. With this in mind, and with several current internationals apparently keen to return home, it could be the new-look squad could have a mix of around 13 New Zealanders, six Australians and four others.
That could spell the end for the British players who would now have to go head-to-head with the likes of Lei Lei Gao and Li Yan, Canadian Alen Marcina, Jonas Salley and Malik Buari along with any others put forward by agents around the world for just four places in the squad.
Gao, Marcina and Salley would, surely, be near the top of that list.
Young Australian defender Steven O'Dor is another likely target as he fits the Australasian and under-20 requirements and could be joined by in-form midfielder Richard Johnston as the first Australian names pencilled in.
Australian clubs - particularly those out of contention - have already shed players.
Perth have let five go including veteran Stuart Young and All Whites midfielder Adrian Webster who could be a target for the New Zealand franchise.
The 2006-07 Hyundai A-League season has just reached its focal point but already next season's recruitment is well-advanced.
The New Zealand franchise cannot be left to pick among the leftovers again.
Once the FFA gives the tick of approval, they must move quickly, stitch up the deals and show, at last, they mean business. Then deliver.
