Now Wilkinson wants his team to show they are genuine contenders by backing up that performance with another strong showing away to North Queensland Fury next weekend.

The Mariners are still to win back-to-back matches this season, a fact Wilkinson said must change if the team is to challenge the top side consistently.

"We played to our potential against Melbourne and didn't have a bad player," Wilkinson said.

"Our goal is to finish in the top two and to do that we need to keep winning. We believe we can beat any team in the competition. It's all about consistency for us.

"Last week was great but we need to back that up with another good performance in our next match."

"We're only five points behind Sydney so getting two wins in a row is important."

Central Coast were depleted against Melbourne but are expected to have several players back for the North Queensland encounter.

Defender Chris Doig should play, while midfielder Matthew Crowell returns from suspension.

Kiwi international Michael McGlinchey missed the Melbourne win with an ankle injury. He is in the Kiwi squad for tomorrow's World Cup qualifier against Bahrain in Wellington.

Mariners coach Lawrie McKinna is taking advantage of the weekend off and will be at the match.

"It would be great for the A-League if we had the Socceroos and New Zealand at the World Cup next year," he said.