As reported on tribalfootball.com on Monday, Central Coast Mariners left-back Dean Heffernan has joined the Melbourne Heart. The 29-year old, who has been with the Mariners since the A-League commenced in 2005, will finish his time at the club at the end of the season before embarking on a journey with the competitions; newest franchise.

Heffernan has signed a multi-year deal with the Heart and head coach John van 't Schip was delighted to have added him to other key signings Kristian Sarkies and Matt Thompson and has already laid out plans for the once-capped Socceroo.

"Dean is a modern day defender, with great distribution and an excellent physical presence on the field," van 't Schip.

"He is tall, extremely mobile but also technically very sound, which is shown by his ability to move into attack and contribute and create goals.

"While Dean has been used in the past as a left-sided player, our intention is to use him as a central defender," he added.

"There are a number of players at the top level who have moved centrally as they matured and become great on-field leaders.

"With his athleticism and power, he is able to compete with strikers of any type and with his technical quality, he is comfortable enough to keep possession and play the ball out of defence, which is the way we want to play."