It’s a big call for the well-travelled defender who played in four countries - US, New Zealand, Israel and England – before signing with the Sky Blues for four years.

But Cole said even the struggle to get regular game time in the opening rounds of the season was made bearable by the strong team spirit.

Speaking ahead of a tough away match against Wellington Phoenix, the 28-year-old described every day at the Blacktown-based outfit as “something to look forward to”.

“It’s what you always dream football will be like,” he told au.fourfourtwo.com. “Unfortunately it’s not always like that – and you can ask a lot of athletes.

“There’s been nothing wrong with the teams I’ve played in before I just never realised how much better it could be until I was here.”

Cole wouldn't make direct comparisons with his old club but said it was a unique experience to find everyone on the same page.

“There are no cliques within the team, everybody gets on well,” he said. “I’m sure there are a lot of teams like that but I’ve never experienced it to this extent before.

“The coaches, the people working within the club – everyone – I think it helps that it’s a new team, everyone’s really excited about it and everyone’s really excited to be involved.”

After a brief cameo off the bench in the Wanderers opening game of the season, Cole had to cool his heels until round five when he came on as a late substitute.

Since then he has been a team sheet regular, earning his first start in last weekend’s disappointing 2-0 home loss against 10-man Melbourne Victory.

Despite the setback, the club currently sits in sixth position on the table and within finals contention, proving more resilient than some may have expected after eight rounds.

But Cole isn’t surprised that coach Tony Popovic’s has built a competitive squad from scratch within six months.

After getting to know Popovic as a player and assistant coach during their Sydney FC days, Cole says one phrase best describes the former Socceroo: “He’s a winner. That’s what he is.

"He knows how to win and he wants to win at all costs.

“When he called me up and spoke to me about a new team, told me what his ambitions were, I believed him 100 per cent.”

Once a hometown favourite for his infrequent but spectacular goals and acrobatic back-flip celebrations, Cole said it was tough leaving the Sky Blues but Sydney’s lengthy delay in initiating contract negotiations eventually sealed the move.

A small group of fans from his former club often hangs back after Wanderers’ matches to catch up.

While he won’t be drawn on the current woes of his former club, currently sitting rock bottom of the table, he is looking forward to a return to Allianz Stadium for the Round 11 derby and a chance to square the ledger after losing to the cross town rivals earlier in the season.

Given the vagaries of professional football it may be hasty to predict a long association with any club, but Cole admits he’s in a happy place at the moment.

“As a footballer you want to play regularly, you want to play in front of passionate fans and you want to enjoy going to training every day,” he said.

“At the moment that’s exactly what I’m lucky enough to be a part of so, it’s early days yet but we’ll see what happens.”