The Wolves will host APIA Leichhardt in a major semi-final, the winner progressing straight through to the grand final at Bankwest Stadium, the loser to receive a second chance on Sunday afternoon.

For Pasfield, the Wolves are firmly focused on making the most of this initial opportunity to qualify for the decider.

"What we've accomplished so far has been fantastic," Pasfield said. "We've enjoyed being successful and winning the premiership. Now it's down to going on and winning the next two games, that's the main focus.

"These are the games that everyone should be looking forward to. It's a special moment for the players, coaches and the club to be involved in a semi-final, and potentially to be involved in a grand final is a huge achievement.

"We're just treating it as any normal game, we've done it all season, we're not going to change anything this week."

While APIA enter the clash on the back of a grueling penalty shootout victory over Blacktown on Saturday night, the Wolves have spent the last week resting up.

Wollongong coach Luke Wilkshire is weary of a battle-hardened Tigers side, however he's confident the match against Sydney FC last Wednesday helped prepare the side for the added pressure and intensity of finals football.

"Everyone's hungry," Wilkshire said. "We won the premiership, but we want to keep on winning. This is another great opportunity for us, having the weekend off to freshen up, to go and win this game and go straight to the grand final.

"We experienced a change in intensity against Sydney FC, the A-League champions, last week. I expect our intensity to be the same this match, it's just like any other game. We'll be approaching it like any other game, we'll be hungry, focused and out there to win."

Read more: Stingrays pay penalty to crash out of NPL finals

Throughout an illustrious playing career, Pasfield has played through numerous high-pressure situations.

He was there when the Wolves last won an NPL title in 2008 and he was a Central Coast squad member when the Mariners claimed the 2013 A-League grand final.

He recognises how tough it is for a team to complete the premiership-championship double, however, over the past 15 years, he has identified one common thread between successful finals teams.

The sides who achieve success are those who resist the temptation to make unnecessary changes.

With that in mind, Pasfield said the Wolves have stuck to the winning formula that helped them achieve so much success throughout the regular season and he's confident it will continue to deliver results over the next two weeks.

"We've been on top from the start and we finished on top at the end of the rounds," Pasfield said. "Our opponents have been chasing us all season.

"Nothing changes at all for us, it's just another game. We'll go into it and prepare for it like every week, nothing changes. Just because it's a semi-final doesn't mean you start changing things and doing things differently. We'll have the same processes and the same routines."

While you're with us the Illawarra Mercury is offering sport readers 20% off an annual digital subscription. Sign up to stay up to date with all the local sports you love for only $3.00 a week. Terms and conditions apply.