Veteran Sydney FC forward Adam Le Fondre hopes his hat-trick in a 5-0 rout of Central Coast can be the spark to ignite both his and the Sky Blues' remaining weeks of the A-League Men campaign.
The Englishman scored his second ALM treble against the Mariners on Saturday as Sydney bounced back from an embarrassing 4-0 midweek loss to Melbourne City.
Le Fondre, who has had a season disrupted by injury and COVID-19 issues, hopes the return of his goal-scoring touch is a good sign for him and the club moving forward.
"I've sort of had to get my fitness in the games and off the back of that not playing my best and as a team we've probably not played our best stuff either," the 35-year-old told AAP.
"Not really getting the chances which I've been accustomed to getting at Sydney since I've been part of the club.
"With the goal at Wanderers, it's maybe just started to turn for me a little bit.
"Hopefully now this is a good springboard for me and the team going forward."
Saturday's victory means the Sky Blues are fourth on the ladder with 31 points from 23 matches heading into Tuesday's game against Adelaide United at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium.
The Reds are hot on Sydney's heels though, also on 31 points in fifth spot but having played one game less.
With Tuesday's game being Sydney's last before they jet out to Vietnam for their Asian Champions League group stage fixtures, Le Fondre said it is vital to back up the win over the Mariners with another three points before their trip overseas.
"These two games are both important. Obviously we ticked off the Mariners game with a great win and showed great character and resilience," he said.
"There's another big ask coming tomorrow night.
"We've got the squad to do that and I think we've got enough belief in ourselves as players and staff to know we can do that.
"It's about the application.
"We need another performance like the Mariners, not the one like at City."
Adelaide ended a four-match winless run with a 1-0 win over Macarthur last Friday and are boosted by Jacob Tratt's return from a hamstring injury, while Louis D'Arrigo, Ryan Kitto and Bernardo are all available after ending their COVID-19 isolation periods.
The Reds haven't beaten Sydney in their past four meetings with their last win in the Harbour City coming over six years ago in a 2-0 victory on April 2, 2016.
