Danny Allsopp insists he will be fully fit when the former Hyundai A-League star – and potential future policeman – makes a marquee appearance in Tasmania.
Danny Allsopp insists he will be fully fit when the former Hyundai A-League star - and potential future policeman - makes a marquee appearance in Tasmania.
The former Melbourne Victory striker will make a one-off appearance for Victory League club Launceston City for their clash with Tilford Zebras on Saturday.
While the competitions these days are not the same as playing for Manchester City or winning an A-League crown for Victory, the 35-year-old is delighted to be giving back to the grassroots of the game and playing for sheer love.
Allsopp, who also made a cameo appearance for the club last season, was set to play a fortnight ago only to withdraw due to a back injury.
But he has recovered sufficiently to take his place in the round 5 fixture at Mitsubishi Park this weekend as Launceston look for their first win of the season.
"When you come down you have one chance to play a good game and I wanted to give myself the best chance for that to happen," Allsopp said.
"I had to pull out a fortnight ago because I didn't want to come here and disappoint anyone.
"But I should be 100 percent. The team's been scoring plenty of goals which is promising and I know they've been working on not conceding so many as well.
"Hopefully I can have a positive impact on the game and help the team get a good result. I enjoyed coming here last year and I'm happy to come back and help out where I can."
Allsopp still plays in Victoria with club side Croydon City Arrows, where he is also club president and has both of his young sons playing in the juniors.
He says he is enjoying spending more time with his family before mapping out what he wants to do in the future, which may be in law enforcement.
"I've been involved with the Victoria Police soccer team for quite a few years now and I'm currently in the process of recruitment for the police," Allsopp said.
"I want to see if I can get through that and hopefully I can be a policeman one day.
"It's exciting to map out what I want to do and make plans for a career."
Allsopp still has a keen interest in the A-League and Victory and believes they will relish being underdogs in Sunday's blockbuster semi-final against Brisbane Roar.
"It will be tough trip up to (Suncorp Stadium) given they have had to do a lot of travelling with the ACL," Allsopp said of his former club.
"How they come through that will be interesting, especially as they had the disappointment (on Tuesday).
"But it's a good chance to go up there and play the game with the pressure off. It might help them as the underdogs to go out and get the win."
Match Details:
Launceston City vs Tilford Zebras Saturday 26 April 2014 5:00PM at Mitsubishi Park, Launceston