MELBOURNE CITY'S BOUNCEBACKABILITY

Looking across to Victory’s vanquished Christmas Derby foes at City, the time has once again come to respond to a difficult defeat.

Three times already City has reacted to a dispiriting loss in a positive manner: defeating Western United in the inaugural staging of the M80 Derby after being walloped in the FFA Cup Final by Adelaide United, defeating Western Sydney Wanderers 3-2 after collapsing against Brisbane Roar and hammering Newcastle Jets 4-0 a week after going down to Perth Glory.

To borrow a phrase from Ian Dowie, Head Coach Erick Mombaerts' side have demonstrated excellent bouncebackability so far.

Yet, at what point does the kudos given to a group for their ability to spring back from disappointment become damning with faint praise? Bouncebackability is certainly an excellent trait to have but even better would be to not need to bounce back to begin with.

City, based upon 2019's results, seem to have the best chance of the three Victorian clubs to claim silverware come to the end of the season.

They have a talented backline that blends both leadership and talent – Harrison Delbridge should be in Socceroos contention come 2020 – and their lethal attack, led by Jamie Maclaren, is one of the best in the land.

Indeed, when he's firing on all cylinders and well-supported by his teammates, Maclaren's predatory instincts make him one of, if not the, most lethal players in the competition. 

Assuredly, 2019/20 looms as the best chance City – or Heart before them – might have ever had to secure an A-League premiership or championship in their history.

Though they, at times, they can remain frustratingly blunt against an embedded defence – look at the Glory game for an example – they’re still capable of beating any other A-League side on their day.

Perhaps then, the biggest challenge for City will be if can they avoid ‘Hearting it’ in the coming months.

For some undefined reason through the competition’s history, almost every time that the A-League side based out of Bundoora – be they Heart or City – has been presented with a big moment they have subsequently gone to pieces.

Coaches, players, administrators and owners have come and gone but the curse lingers.

The biggest test that City faces could very well be with themselves.

And what of the new kids on the block?