The Wellington Phoenix have signed on Central Coast Mariners striker Adam Kwasnik for their second season in the A-League soccer competition.
Phoenix chief executive Tony Pignata was relieved to have secured the 25-year-old, Mariners' top scorer with 15 goals in 62 A-league games.
"He's a proven goalscorer -
including getting a couple of crackers against us last season.
"Adam will complement the team well and fill that crucial striking role."
With the club's bid for former Socceroos striker Joel Porter falling over, securing a player of Kwasnik's calibre was crucial to their ambitions in their second season in the league.
"Our ambitions in terms of recruitment this season was to sign players we knew of and who were proven at an elite level," Pignata said.
Kwasnik, will arrive next week.
"I've got a lot to improve in my game and I know there is going to be a lot of expectations on me. I just want to work hard, strike up some good partnerships and see how we go," he said.
Kwasnik said it was a tough decision to leave the Mariners as he had been with the club since they became part of the A-League.
"I'm looking forward to bigger and better things in Wellington this season."
Phoenix now have a squad of 21 of a possible 23. Pignata said the vacant spots on the roster were unlikely to be filled until after pre-season assessments were made.
Phoenix squad: Mark Paston, Jeremy Christie, Tony Lochhead, Jon McKain, Karl Dodd, Tim Brown, Leo Bertos, Vaughan Coveny, Shane Smeltz, Michael Ferrante, Daniel, Richard Johnson, Troy Hearfield, Vince Lia, Ben Sigmund, Greg Draper, Glen Moss, Leilei Gao, Costa Barbarouses, Andrew Durante and Adam Kwasnik.
- NZPA
