Josh Macdonald, Corey Gameiro and Jordan Murray are all alumni of the Illawarra side and will face their former club on Friday October 5.

Macdonald is an Unanderra Hearts junior and was playing for the Wollongong Wolves before signing with the Mariners.

Gameiro also featured for the Wolves and spent time as a junior with Lake Heights FC and Port Kembla FC, and Murray climbed the junior ranks at Bulli FC and Russell Vale Junior FC before also playing for the Wolves.

Wolves coach and former Socceroo Wilkshire said it would be a great chance for his current players take on the former club stars.

“This is a great opportunity to get an A-League team down here in Wollongong,” Wilkshire said.

“Anyone from Wollongong is really passionate about the region so I am sure that the Wollongong boys who play for the Mariners will be looking forward to playing in their home town.

"There will be plenty of football fans in Wollongong who will be keen to see some of our former players who have made that step into the A-League.

“The game is a great showcase for football in Wollongong and for the region to show everyone how passionate we are about football.

“For our players who play in NPL 1, this is a chance to step up and show that they can match it with players in the A-League. It will be a really good test for them and we’re really looking forward to it.

"it will be a great night for football in Wollongong.”

If the match date clashes with FFA Cup arrangements, it will be delayed 24 hours until Saturday.