The Welllington Phoenix defender Tony Lochead is set to return from injury to the starting lineup for Friday's A-League football match against bottom of the table Adelaide.
The All White suffered a groin injury earlier this month in the win over Perth Glory and his return will allow Manny Muscat to revert to right back and Vince Lia to move back into midfield.
His return also means coach Ricki Herbert is finally closing in on a fully fit squad.
Striker Paul Ifill, who's also suffering from a groin injury, is still unavailable but is expected to be right for the first game of the New Year against Sydney.
That will leave only Lucas Pantellis on the injured list, although he's out for the season with a knee injury.
