The Mariners have won two of the past three wooden spoons and failed to make the A-League finals in the past four seasons.

Mulvey has taken over from the sacked Paul Okon this season, armed with gun new signings Tommy Oar and Ross McCormack, and a fresh wave of positivity.

In Round One, the Mariners face Mulvey’s former club Brisbane Roar, whom hold a dominant head-to-head record against the Yellow and Navy with 28 wins in their 46 overall meetings.

“You’re living in the past,” Mulvey said when asked about Central Coast’s poor record against Roar, before taking the question in his own tangent.

“This is what I want everybody to understand, this is a new venture now.

“We’re heading in the right direction. There’s going to be hiccups and obstacles along the way.

“We’ve made a pledge and everybody has stepped over that line. We’ve drawn a line in the sand.

“We don’t talk about that anymore. We talk about looking forward and having a positive environment.

“So far so good. That’s not to say we’ll win every game. But we’ll be in every game because we’re going to be competitive.”

Mulvey also declared McCormack would start against Brisbane, despite his late arrival.

“He’s looking sharp in training,” he said.

“We’re very lucky to have him. He’s gelling with the team.”

Mulvey added that expectations were high, demanding a good performance and result against Brisbane on Sunday.

“The performance is always the key,” he said.

“What I’ve seen so far, we’ll have some obstacles and hurdles, but getting that gel on the field is the key.

“We can only do so much in training. This is now fair dinkum. We’ll find out.”