Jamie Harnwell’s three goals in four games since returning from injury look set to earn him another contract next year with Perth Glory, but fellow striker Eugene Dadi appears to have played his last game.
Harnwell scored two goals in the Glory’s 4-0 whitewash of the Newcastle Jets at ME Bank Stadium on Boxing Day, but he only ended up starting at the expense of Dadi.
The 36-year-old former Ivory Coast striker had only managed six appearances with Perth this season, but was set to start against Newcastle with Branko Jelic still out injured. However, he called in sick the morning of the game, handing Harnwell the start and he grasped it.
It now appears that Dadi has played his final game in purple and will be heading elsewhere during January’s transfer window.
“Eugene was going to be part of the team, but phoned up sick in the morning. That was unfortunate because he was going to play. He will be away from recovery as well because the doctor didn’t want him coming in,” coach Dave Mitchell said.
“He phoned in and said he wasn’t feeling well. Maybe he had some dodgy turkey, I don’t know. There was the possibility he might have started. I haven’t discussed it (his future) with him, but I know there is a club that is quite interested in him so if he can’t break into the side and wants to leave, that might be beneficial.”
Harnwell has done enough to suggest he can play on next season and as long as Mitchell remains coach of the Glory in the near future, he wants the 32-year-old to be part of it.
“He has a nous for scoring up front. I think highly of him and he knows that. I’ve had a few heart to hearts with him over the past couple of years and the character of the guy always stands up,” Mitchell said.
“He is Mr Dependable and sometimes we throw him in when he’s not quite ready, but you know what you’re going to get. He still scored two goals, is a threat and we know what we will get if we get good balls to him. If I’m going to be here then for sure (he will be part of the team).”
Harnwell has never made any secret that he wants to continue on with the Glory for as long as possible. He began at the club in 1998 and has been a mainstay of it through the NSL and now Hyundai A-League, and is confident he’s done enough to earn at least one more season now.
“Hopefully we will start talking soon now. I’ve made a case now to be playing next year and deep down I’ve always wanted to. My dad’s always said that you are a long-time retired and I want to keep going as long as I can,” Harnwell said.
“Hopefully that’s at Perth Glory, so I want to sit down and sort something out for a long time to come and I want to be part of this club for a long future because it’s been a massive part of my life. I couldn’t imagine going back to an office job or something like that, so I want to stay in the game as long as I can.”
The win over Newcastle moved Perth back into the top six and Harnwell is hoping that continues after the week off with a home clash with Sydney FC and then away matches with Melbourne Victory and Adelaide United.
“It’s fantastic obviously. It was in front of a big crowd and was a massive game for the club, so to stand up and score a couple of goals was good, but the whole team was superb,” he said.
“It was nice to get on the end of two of them and could have probably had one or two more. I’m just really happy for the club and for Mitch. We’ve all been feeling a little bit of pressure, but we knew we had the quality in there and hopefully this is our big breakthrough game.”
