The 26-year-old has spent the last decade in England with the likes of Barnsley, Grimsby Town and Port Vale but he’s now ready for a new challenge.

He has been training hard to try and catch up with his colleagues in the fitness stakes and coach Ricki Herbert is expected to hand Mulligan his chance against Adelaide United at Hindmarsh Stadium.

And should the Reds concede cheap free-kicks within striking distance of their own goal then they could find that Shannon Cole isn’t the only player who can perform from a set piece.

Mulligan told the Dominion Post: "I've not done it so far because I've been running on the track but usually every day after training I'm there, trying to practise my free-kick technique. It was something I wanted to add to my game."

Mulligan admits he’s no regrets about swapping England for Wellington and has nothing but praise for the club he has joined.

He said: “England is probably one of the hardest places to try and earn a living.

"I'd been over there for 10 years but I just thought the time was right. I know Ricki Herbert and I know a lot of the lads here. Ricki contacted me and I'd been wanting to come home for a while now. I'm just glad to be here.

"It's a strong squad, too. Obviously we've not had a good result last week but hopefully this week will be better.

"It is hard to watch the boys training each day while I'm running on the track, but they'd been training for three months and I've had to get fit, and hopefully I can be involved at the weekend."