Prized Gold Coast United recruit Shane Smeltz cleared to make NPL debut in tomorrow’s Easts clash
Gold Coast United chairman Danny Maher has provided an update on the international clearance saga that kept prized recruit and A-League legend Shane Smeltz out of the club’s NPL opener.
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SHANE Smeltz’s Gold Coast United return has finally been given the green light, with the A-League legend to make his NPL debut tomorrow following weeks of uncertainty.
Lured out of a two-year retirement by United last month, Smeltz was forced to sit out the Surfsiders’ season-opening 1-0 loss to Olympic on February 11 as red tape stalled clearance from his previous club, Indonesia’s Borneo FC.
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But with clearance coming through this week, the 38-year-old striker is free to play in tomorrow night’s 7pm trip to Easts – his first game in United colours since making 38 appearance for the A-League franchise between 2009-11.
“The international clearance system is changing and Indonesia is on the new system and we’re on the old one,” United chairman Danny Maher said of the transfer dramas.
“The FFA (Football Federation Australia) couldn’t force Indonesia to use the old system and Indonesia couldn’t force FFA to use the new one.
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“I spoke to the lawyer at the FFA earlier this week and he ran me through it and it was just one of those things.
“He said they understood the urgency. Football Queensland and the FFA really escalated it up and they sorted it out.
“It required manual intervention and escalation and the FFA made that intervention.”
Sitting second on the A-League’s all-time goalscoring list with 92, Smeltz appears likely to come off the bench in United’s second outing.
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After two washed-out games against Brisbane Strikers and United, Gold Coast Knights will play their first fixture at home to Olympic at 6.30pm tomorrow.
The game is a rematch of last year’s grand final, won 2-1 by the Knights.
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