For Porter the day signalled the end of a six-year exile in England and the former Socceroo forward revealed that it was the personal attention from Head Coach Miron Bleiberg and Chairman Clive Palmer that swayed his decision to return to home soil.

"Miron and Clive Palmer spoke to me and Miron even went all the way to England to see one of my games and that was important to me because it showed that they were keen to bring me to the club," Porter said.

"As a player, if you feel wanted decisions become that much easier to make. I'd spent six years at Hartlepool and I'd given some thought to coming home, so when the offer came in from Gold Coast United I jumped at the chance; I couldn't turn it down to be honest.

"Of course there's the other benefits of the Gold Coast; the weather and lifestyle are both fantastic and that makes it easier and more comfortable for my family."

The 30-year-old signed off with Hartlepool on a successful note bagging 23 goals in 45 games in his final season, a tally that helped his former club maintain their League One status.

After overcoming the challenges of adapting to the physical nature of the English game, he says his test now is to readjust to the Australian style of play.

He added: "Personally, I enjoyed a really good final season with Hartlepool and managed to get a few goals.

"As a team we struggled a bit and only just managed to stay in League One, which was a big thing for that club because it's only a small club in a small town.

"It's a tough league to play in as it's very physical. It's a different style of football to what is played here in Australia and one of my challenges now is to make that adjustment as quickly as I can."

Adam Griffiths on the other hand knows all about the Hyundai A-League, securing a Championship medal with Newcastle Jets in 2007/08.

After two seasons with the Jets the big defender made the decision to switch to the Gold Coast late last year. When asked today about his goal for the upcoming season, he made his intentions crystal clear.

"Another Championship medal would be nice," he declared. "It's quite surreal to me at the moment. The training set-up here and the view from the training pitch; it's amazing.

"I'm looking forward to getting stuck into training now and meeting all the players and coaching staff here.

"Once I'd signed I had to put my excitement to one side and concentrate on what I was doing with Newcastle, but now I'm here I really want to focus on doing well for this club. I'm looking forward to all the challenges ahead of us.

"It was interesting to watch the Gold Coast United squad come together during last season. When you see the likes of Jess Vanstrattan, Michael Thwaite, Shane Smeltz and Jason Culina signing you know the team is going to be strong."

Both players will now be in intensive training regimes before making their Skilled Park debut in the pre-season friendly game against North Queensland Fury on June 23, a game that already has added spice.

"The game against North Queensland Fury is going to be a challenge for both clubs. We're both new and both looking to gel our squads together but it has all the ingredients of a good game," Griffiths said.

Porter has other hopes for the clash - to hit the winner against the other Hyundai A-League newcomers and announce his return to the Australian scene in full view of Fury's major capture!

He added: "Fury signing Robbie Fowler is great for the Hyundai A-League as he's a true professional in every sense of the word. It'll be interesting to play against him and I'm looking forward to that.

"We'll certainly be doing everything we can to make sure we beat them in that pre-season game - and personally, I'd love to score the winner!"

Porter and Griffiths will be signing autographs at tonight's (Thursday) training game against local Premier League side Musgrave (Musgrave Avenue, Labrador) between 6.00pm and 6.30pm, with the match to kick off at 7.00pm.

 

JOEL PORTER

Date of birth: 25 December 1978.

Place of birth: Adelaide, SA.

Position: Striker.

Previous clubs: 1998-1999 West Adelaide, 2000-2002 Melbourne Knights, 2002-2003 Sydney Olympic, 2003-2009 Hartlepool (England).

Representative Honours: Qantas Socceroo (4 caps).

Major Honours Achieved: 2004/05 Fan's Player of the Year (Hartlepool), 2008/09 Fan's Player of the Year (Hartlepool), 2008/09 Player's Player of the Year (Hartlepool), 2008/09 Hartlepool Mail Player of the Year.

 

ADAM GRIFFITHS

Date of birth: 21 August 1979.

Place of birth: Sydney, NSW.

Position: Central Defender, Central Midfielder.

Previous clubs: 1999-2001 Northern Spirit, 2002-2003 Newcastle United (Australia), 2004-2005 Oostende (Belgium), 2005-2006 Watford (England), 2006-2007 Brentford (England), 2007-2009 Newcastle Jets.

Representative Honours: Qantas Socceroos.   

Major Honours: HAL Championship 2007-08 (Newcastle Jets).