Smeltz terrorised defences up and down the country last term and is polishing his shooting boots once more as Sunday's big opening day derby against Brisbane Roar draws near.

With local bragging rights at stake, the United's 19-goal marksman said he and his teammates are determined to get their season off to the right start.

"Everyone is itching to get out there after a long pre-season and you always look forward to the first game of a new campaign, regardless of who you're playing," Smeltz said.

"Being a local derby there is that added ingredient of course and this time last year it went well for us; hopefully we can repeat that.

"The World Cup wasn't that long ago but I feel really fresh and ready to play. I had a couple of weeks off which was great and now I just can't wait to get out there again. We want to prove again that we're a good team who is ready to challenge for honours.

"My plan is to go out there and do what I normally do, which is to help the team by playing the best I can and hopefully contributing to us getting the three points.

"If goals come along then that's great, but the most important thing is to get off to a good start and we're pretty confident that we can do just that.

"Roar are a new-look team this season but we're only concerned about ourselves. We know if we go out there with the right mentality and perform the way we know we can, then we'll get the right result."