“The club is really fantastic, the way it's run it's very professional. Coach John Turner really knows what he's doing and the future looks bright with the junior set up where they have teams in all age groups.

“Wollongong is a real hotbed of football,” he told au.fourfourtwo.com.

Wollongong Wolves won back to back National Soccer League titles in 2000 and 2001. And a number of well known A-League players have come from or been produced on the south coast such as Jacob Timpano, Ruben Zadkovich and Sasho Petrovski.

However, any A-League bid from the Illawarra would lean heavily on Wollongong Wolves and the structures they already have in place.

“I don't know too much about the A-League bid – others would know more about it than me – but I've been very impressed with what I've seen so far,” added Cahill.

Cahill, 22, came home a few weeks ago after three years playing in the tough US collegiate system for a university in south Carolina.

Prior to that he was part of the Joeys 2003 campaign and an AIS student.

He left Australia during that infamous period of around 16 months between the old NSL closing and the new A-League opening. Cahill says it's been a great move for him.

“It was incredibly competitive in the US – they really have that mentality over there and I learned a lot.”

Cahill is that rarity in Australian football – a natural leftie who can play in midfield or in defence. He's hoping that a good season with the Wolves will be a springboard to the big league here in Australia.

In the meantime the Wolves will be hoping to get their NSW premier league season on track after a 4-0 loss to Sydney Olympic on Saturday night. Wolves currently sit on one point from two games in NSW's elite club competition.

Wollongong play Apia Leichardt at home this Sunday.