“All Night” Dwight Yorke was a pioneer in A-League Season One.

A huge success on and off the park the former Manchester United and Villa forward set the template. 

And in Season 13, Adam Le Fondre has continued that tradition with a sizzling first season for “Alf” at Yorke’s club Sydney FC.

We look at four other EPL talents to grace the league, starting with Celtic’s latest addition to their coaching staff. 

 

Damien Duff

Chelsea, Fulham, Newcastle and Blackburn striker

A-League club: Melbourne City

 

The Republic of Ireland legend with 100 caps joined Manchester City’s Australian arm Melbourne City in 2014.

Having left Fulham on a free transfer following relegation from the Premier League, he was fresh from the EPL.

Having been coached by Mourinho and Ranieri, he brought EPL nous and World Cup experience.

Duff’s pedigree was unquestionable: two Premier League Championships with Chelsea, the final of the Europa League with Fulham, a League Cup with Blackburn, a World Cup for his country.

He linked with the A-League club during their off-season trip to the UK and moved with wife Elaine and children Woody and Darcy to the other side of the world for a new adventure.

But doubts over the then-35-year-old’s ability to negotiate a tough Australian summer lingered.

Correctly as it turned out.

 

Duff for City playing against Bolton in a pre-season friendly in England

The winger got to experience big crowds at Melbourne Derbies but injuries - actually a bizarre double injury - put the kybosh on his Aussie adventure.

Duff strained ankle ligaments against Wellington, but it was revealed that he has also ruptured a tendon in his calf.

And with that, his A-League career ended.

He scored once in 15 appearances and making five assists. He impressed during his time, albeit half a season.

But a future EPL star was in his midst at City with Aaron Mooy catching the eye before his move to Manchester City then Huddersfield. 

Upon leaving Duff's thoughts summed up the move: “I think at times … you miss the rain and the snow and the wind.

I think that’s in our blood, I’ve played in games over here in 40-degree heat and after 20 minutes you’re ready for the game to finish,” reported AAP.

Some basic googling would have told Duff the conditions to expect. Australia plus summer equals a tough gig!

He parted ways after a season to fulfill an ambition to play in his home country’s league at Shamrock Rovers, before retiring in 2016.

He took over coaching duties with Rovers juniors and was seemingly happy but life changed for Duff in recent months.

Now 40 years of age, the Ballyboden-born (the small town in South Dublin where  Melbourne AFL legend the late Jim Stynes began his Gaelic football career) has begun his coaching career in the professional game.

And it’s escalated pretty quickly.

Earlier this year, he was appointed a reserve team coach at Celtic FC, a club he’s supported from afar for many years.

From coaching juniors in Ireland to Paradise was a big move.

But it got even better.

After Brendan Rodgers left for EPL outfit Leicester City, Duff swiftly moved up to new boss Neill Lennon’s backroom staff along with John Kennedy.

And with Aussie Tom Rogic at Parkhead, Duff maintains a link with Australia.

 

Francis Jeffers

Everton, Arsenal and England striker

A-League club: Newcastle Jets (two stints)

 

The Scouser attended the same primary school as Wayne Rooney a decade before the Everton and Manchester United star.

Jeffers was a young tyro coming through at the turn of the new millennium.

“The Fox In The Box” scaled the heights on the blue half of Merseyside and after debuting for the Toffees as a 16-year-old in 1997, became an England U21 goal machine.

His EPL form and huge potential got him into the senior England team, debuting at Upton Park against, coincidentally, Australia.

It was a 3-1 loss to a rampant Socceroos in 2003. Jeffers scored that day as Sven played his “Young Lions” in the second half.

It was Jeffers’ only England cap.

He was soon an Arsenal player with Wenger splashing £8 on a player who looked every bit a future Gunners great.

But he never became a club legend and Jeffers returned to Goodison on loan.

He drifted from Charlton to Glasgow Rangers, Blackburn, Ipswich, and Sheffield Wednesday over the ensuing seven years.

A career lifeline and a chance to start afresh came in from the A-League in 2012 at Newcastle Jets. 

There, he didn’t have any trouble going unnoticed on Newcastle’s streets.

His stint in the A-League was, oddly, for 10 matches only. 

He left the stunning beaches and cool lifestyle for Motherwell.

Jeffers (right) versus Victory in Melbourne

Clearly, Newcastle made an impression on him and Jeffers returned for a second spell at Hunter Stadium a year later, scoring four times in 25 games. 

He didn’t do enough to earn another contract and drifted to Malta for a year at Florians.

And after a number of trials around the world (including, it’s said, in Brunei) his last club was English lower-league outfit Accrington, finishing up as a 33-year-old.

A year earlier he attracted a court fine after being found with a broomstick outside his ex-father-in-law’s home (he’d separated from his wife at this point).

A talent, no doubt but injuries and frustrating career choices combined. We and the EPL didn’t see the potential of “The Fox" who turned out to be a damp squib in Oz.

Now, 38 and retired, we’re glad to see he’s putting back at Everton, working with their youth academy players at a club he’s always loved.

 

Robbie Fowler

Liverpool, Leeds, Man City, and England striker

A-League clubs: North Queensland Fury, Perth Glory

The most celebrated UK player ever to play A-League football. No contest.

Fowler first arrived in his August years, age 34 in 2009 after three months at his last EPL club, Blackburn.

The Liverpool great was the marquee signing for short-lived but ambitious A-League new boys North Queensland Fury.

The home of the Great Barrier Reef, crocs and the humidity, it was both bizarre and brilliant.

Fowler’s arrival was huge news in Australia, never mind in sleepy Townsville who had never seen anything like it (Townsville is about four hours flight north of Sydney in sweaty Far North Queensland).

 

Suddenly, Reds fans wanted to see their hero in the A-League playing across the country in Perth, Melbourne, Adelaide and Sydney and across the ditch in Wellington).

The England international famously smashed a superb looping long-range effort against Sydney FC at the old Allianz (with a Reds fan jumping the fence to celebrate on the pitch with him).

Half of the traveling fans that day wore red.

Clearly, the Scouse legend liked Australia because he signed another marquee deal, this time for Perth Glory in 2010, a year after joining Fury.

His teammates raved about his incredible finishing ability. He scored regularly and the fans loved him.

Just a pity Australia had him at the backend of his illustrious career.

He made 54 appearances in the A-League scoring 18 times.

A year after his Glory stint he had a six-month spell in the Thai League with Muangthong United, where he dabbled in coaching, long before the league boomed.

He retired a wealthy man in 2012 and began work on his coaching career, getting a pro license and working at the Liverpool academy. 

Fowler also has been a regular pundit across a number of TV outlets in the UK. 

But life changed this week, and Fowler was appointed head coach of A-League club Brisbane Roar. 

It is his first major appointment as a senior head coach. 

 

 

 

Emile Heskey

Leicester City, Liverpool and England striker

A-League club: Newcastle Jets

Heskey’s arrival in 2012 coincided with a boom in the A-League.

He was part of a ‘big three’ marquee signings: Japanese star Shinji Ono and Italian legend Alessandro Del Piero.

In fact, Heskey played against Del Piero in his A-League debut in front of 36,000 fans in Sydney.

 

Heskey scored that day and he kept scoring for his new A-League outfit, who signed him to a marquee deal.

With his partner - now wife - Chantelle, they fitted in well to life in the Surfside town north of Sydney.

The big forward scored 10 times in 42 A-League matches, but his most telling contribution was on the younger players.

He won 62 caps for England between 1999 and 2010. On Merseyside, he won six trophies during a four-year stint. 

And was Liverpool’s record signing when he moved after six years from his hometown club Leicester City for £11 million in 2000. 

All this experience was vital in helping youngsters such as Connor Chapman and Craig Goodwin develop over his two-year stint in the Hunter.

Heskey returned to England and played briefly with Bolton.

The now 41-year-old retired in 2016 and worked as a TV and media pundit. Sounds a familar path... that was until an unusual career move was announced late last year. 

The Canadian independent oil exploration and production company GenOil appointed Heskey as Senior Vice President for the Caribbean Region. 

That's right! He's now in oil and gas! 

The former Jets striker is quoted in a release on the company's site: “I am excited to join the company and to make introductions for Genoil Inc. in the Caribbean market as the company expands our footprint globally.

"Our extensive international relationships and cutting edge GHU technology has the potential to capture the market among heavy oil producers around the world.

"The vision of the company is to build a strong environmentally focused desulfurization and heavy oil business that is based on our unique technology.

"Genoil’s state-of-the-art technology, combined with our very experienced board of directors and management team, give me the confidence that the GHU technology will be successfully commercialized and implemented around the world.”

Sounds like Heskey's made a smooth transition into the corporate world.