The 22-year-old has started the majority of the games this season, mostly in his preferred position in the middle.
But last week the Caversham holding midfielder filled in at left back and had a strong game in what was a reasonably foreign position.
Southern United lost 3-1 to Team Wellington but Grove managed to enhance his reputation.
''Yeah. I thought I had a decent game,'' he said.
''We conceded three goals, which is a bit of a frustrating thing. But I was happy with my form.
''The coach gave me some positive feedback. I felt a little bit of pressure lifted not playing in that sort of pivotal central role, which was nice.''
It is Grove's first year in the premiership and he has been pleased with what he has been able to contribute.
''They sort of asked me last year but I chose to go home during the break and see my family,'' he said.
''I thought with another year I'd be ready for it, sort of thing.
''I've been pretty happy with how it has gone, to be fair. I've been feeling my way and still feel I have a lot more to give.
''Hopefully, if I do play again, I'll have a bigger impact.''
Grove moved to Dunedin from Auckland to study and is in his fifth year of a double degree in physical eduction and accountancy.
He is doing an internship with a local accountancy firm and is hopeful of gaining a fulltime position there.
If he does, he will probably be back again for Southern United and looking to build on the progress he has made this season.
Grove's ambition is to play at the highest level he can and that starts with ''nailing down a starting spot''.
He has been in and out of the team a little since Christmas but was a regular starter earlier in the season.
Grove honed his skills playing for East Coast Bays as a youngster and was starting to crack into the senior team when he had some injury setbacks.
He had operations on his knees and then moved south to pursue his education.
Southern United lost Irish striker Danny Furlong this week with the 28-year-old signing a two-year deal with Galway United.
Grove said he would be sorely missed up front when Southern United hosted the Phoenix Reserves at Sunnyvale on Sunday.
It is a game Southern will be targeting for a win. The team was hoping to finish in the top six this season and is at present eighth with three round-robin games remaining.
The last time the teams met, Southern had to settle for a draw (2-2).
''To be honest, they embarrassed us for about 70 minutes. We were chasing shadows in the game.
''It was televised so it was a hard one to take, so we are looking to really apply some pressure and take that attitude we have taken into some of the bigger games,'' Grove said.
