Between them, Kingston City and Dandenong Thunder have accumulated 46 points in total this season, both unbeaten from their opening eight matches.
While the Thunder have relinquished top spot following their three point deduction for fielding an ineligible player, Huss Skenderovic’s side men have good reason to go into tonight’s clash at the Grange as favourites.
Eight wins from eight has yielded an impressive tally of 26 goals for, with the Thunder’s front trio contributing to 21 goals already this season.
While the 2012 VPL Champions have generated plenty of headlines thanks to their rampant form, Kingston have not gone unnoticed themselves and a 2-2 home draw against the in-form North Geelong Warriors in Round Six remains their only blemish so far this campaign.
In charge of City is one of the league’s youngest managers in Nick Tolios who is embarking on his fourth season at the helm of the Clayton South based club.
The 34-year-old is delighted with the start his side has made while noting the importance of carrying their form into the winter months where the cooler temperatures see an increase in injuries.
“We are very happy with our start to this season because our squad has been tested really early on and has stood up,” Tolios said.
“We have worked really hard in the off-season to make sure the squad was strengthened and I think we have done that. However we understand that the colder months are coming in and history shows injuries will come into play and a strong squad is required to compete in this league.”
However tonight’s clash looms as City’s toughest test so far and the former South Melbourne defender is well aware of the danger that Thunder presents.
“I have seen them play and I think they are the benchmark in our league at this stage,” Tolios affirms.
“They have a really strong backline with plenty of experience and most teams will find it hard to break them down while also being able to punish you going forward with their pace and strength.
“This game for us on Monday night will surely test our young squad and show me where we are as a team when paired off against a very strong outfit.”
Kingston will head into the encounter without injured pairing Simo Jovanovic and Velibor Mitrovic who have been missing since their Round Five win over Melbourne City; the former pulling his hamstring following a return from suspension in last week’s 8-0 mauling of State League 4 outfit Endeavour Hills Fire in the FFA Cup.
One player who has stepped up in the absence of the duo has been Czech import Zdenek Koukal who has played a variety of different positions in the opening eight rounds including centre-back where he is again expected to line up tonight and partner captain Ryan Love.
Tolios is full of praise for the 32-year-old ex-Czech youth international who has also found the back of the net five times and is joint top scorer in the league for City alongside the injured Mitrovic.
“Zdenek has been a delight to work with and has been great for our younger players. He has so much experience and is such a professional when it comes to preparing for training and match days.
His versatility has been a huge positive for us because he has already played four separate positions for us this year due to injuries and suspensions.”
Last week saw City record a hard-fought 2-1 away win over Murray United on the state border with marquee signing Jerry Karpeh scoring his third goal in eight appearances after a slow start to the campaign.
However Tolios is pleased with the former Perth Glory striker’s overall work rate this season as he prepares to face-off against his former Glory captain Simon Colosimo.
“Jerry has been a great addition to our squad because of the experience he brings into this line up especially upfront.
“He has really started to pick up his all-round game with every match. The three goals he has scored to date have come in crucial games for us away from home.”
The Liberian-born forward struggled for fitness early on and start the opening few games on the bench but his manager is convinced that the marksman is beginning to hit peak form at the right time.
“His fitness was a concern for us coming into our squad late in pre-season but in his last few games his work rate up front has been good. I’m sure as the season goes on Jerry will really test most defences and bag a few more goals”
A notable feature of the Kingston team has been the amount of youngsters who have played their part in their excellent start to the season with a large contingent of their starting eleven being made up of players 21 and under.
Kostas Droutsas, Damian Iaconis, Simo Jovanovic, Rowan McNamee, Hamish Millar, Nick Teichmann and Slaven Vranesevic are all part of this promising young contingent and the former NSL defender is happy with their progression at the club.
“One thing for me over the last four years at the club has been to make sure we strengthen our team with young players capable of growing and playing week in and week out in any level of the NPL for years to come,” he said.
“Players like Stelios Konstantinidis, Damian Iaconis and Velibor Mitrovic are proof that young seasoned body players can do well when given an opportunity. We have also brought in Simo Jovanavic, Mouad Zwed, Kostas Droutsas and Slaven Vranesevic who have already shown that they are capable of doing well in the NPL.”
Despite plenty of positive results over the last couple of seasons, Kingston has struggled for consistency which has ultimately proved costly in their hunt for promotion.
Seven defeats in their last eleven fixtures of the 2015 campaign saw City fall away from the top two promotion positions and Tolios stresses that a top three spot was the aim at the beginning of the season.
“The club at the start of this season had a goal of finishing in the top three. This goal hasn’t changed and if promotion comes due to the hard work we have displayed on and off the pitch then of course we will push for it.”
Tolios – who was part of City’s last top-flight squad in the 2007 VPL season – believes that the main priority at the moment in ensuring the squad is injury free.
“At this stage of the season however it’s all about making sure we keep our squad healthy and fighting fit and not looking further than Monday night’s game.
“I understand this is a typical cliché response but that’s the truth.”
As Tolios notes, this evening’s contest is of prime importance at the moment for Kingston with the bright lights of Monday night football is expected to bring together a large crowd to the Grange Reserve as the visitors make the short trip up the Dandenong Bypass/Westall Road for the contest.
The Kingston supremo, who is assisted by Skenderovic’s former Oakleigh assistant Bill Theodorpoulos at City, remains cautious heading into the game and admits that a failure to take any points against their in-form rivals will not be the end of the world for his understrength young side.
“Stoping Thunder [tonight] will be hard as most teams so far have found out. I am hoping that both teams come out to play and really put on a great performance for the neutral.
“Of course our goal is to win every game but we are not taking this game lightly. We understand that our concentration will need to be at its best because they have players that can win a game if given half a chance.
“However we are also aware that its only round nine and the league isn’t determined after this game”.
With their opponents resting the likes of Colosimo and prolific duo Brandon Barnes and Amir Osmancevic in the mid-week FFA Cup defeat to Hume City, Thunder are likely to enter the match at full strength with the stage and lights set for an exciting ninety to round of the long weekend as the two teams go into battle.
Photo: Smile for Peter