Two months ago Alex Brosque was set on retiring.
The A-League season and Asian Champions League travel had taken its toll physically and mentally, and the 34-year-old's head was telling him he was done.
That was until late March, when Sydney FC beat the Glory 3-2 in Perth to secure a second successive Premiers' Plate.
Brosque's wife Nadia was watching on TV from Sydney as her husband, who'd started nearly every other game, came off the bench.
In a rare role reversal, the Sky Blues' impact substitute Matt Simon played the full 90 minutes with his usual enthusiastic antagonism.
Something occurred to her and she put it to Brosque when he returned home.
"It was that game that sparked the conversation," Brosque told AAP.
"We were talking about Matty Simon, just saying how great he played and how much enjoyment he seemed to be playing with.
"Regardless of whether he started or came off the bench, the impact he had and energy he brought every week was probably what inspired me to realise that no matter what role you have in the team, whether it's starting or not, you can still have an important impact.
"My wife actually spoke to me and said 'I understand physically, and even mentally, why you must feel drained but what if next year you went into the season with a different mindset ... coming off the bench a lot more if needed to keep you fresh? What if that was an option?'"
She'd planted the seed, and Brosque set about picking the brains of former players including the club's football operations manager Terry McFlynn and then assistant coach Steve Corica.
Their message - to play in whatever capacity for as long as possible - helped him realise he wasn't quite ready for the finality of retirement.
Now having re-signed, the club stalwart will approach the new season with fresh perspective.
He believes his experience can help in a year underpinned by change, as Corica takes the reins from Graham Arnold, new players arrive, and home games are relocated throughout Allianz Stadium's rebuild.
He's also considering his captaincy and is willing to hand it on if it feels right and his minutes are significantly reduced.
"I guess that's why I want to see where pre-season goes this year," Brosque said.
"If I feel great physically then of course I'd love to play every game but if I can't, then maybe the captaincy is possibly something I'll have to pass on to someone like Wilko (Alex Wilkinson) who will play every week.
"I look at someone like Wilko and his role is just as important in terms of leadership as what I bring.
"In passing the armband for me - if that was to be - I don't think it would change my role in the team or the way I am with the players on and off the field."
Australian Associated Press
