Having finished top of the NPL ladder two seasons in a row, South Melbourne coach Chris Taylor believes that he has the right foundations in place to launch another successful campaign.

Taylor has the luxury of retaining most of his starting 11 from last season’s grand final loss to Bentleigh and has recruited players who he believes have the drive to be successful.

“You know, if I’m going to be blunt with you, honest, we won the league the last two seasons,” he tells Neos Kosmos. “Maybe we missed out on the grand final last year, but we’re not too far away. So it’s not a case of making wholesale changes. We just want to improve each year without making wholesale changes.”

In comes playmaker Marcus Schroen from Hume City, versatile midfielder Matthew Foschini from Oakleigh, midfielders Luke Eyles and Jason Hicks as well as keeper Zaim Zeneli from Dandenong Thunder.

Taylor says South is still on the hunt for an offensive player but that they have options there as well.

He believes Schroen will add to South’s firepower.

“I think he was one of the standout players in the NPL last year. And he’s ambitious. He wants to go to the A-League. That’s part and parcel of what we’re doing. We want players who have ambition. Matty Foschini’s played there, but also has ambition to get back there. I’ve got players that have got the right sort of drive, so that’s a big thing.”

Taylor says that last season, South played about 40 games in all competitions compared with 22 games two years ago. He believes the new signings give more depth, balance and versatility.

“It’s really a case of strengthening our squad to deal with the increased workload we’ve experienced over the last two years,” he says.

South’s main striker is again expected to be the remarkably consistent Milos Lujic, who has won the Premier League’s Golden Boot for the last three years’ running. When asked if Lujic can continue to score season after season, Taylor is willing to consider the possibility that he may not continue in his rich vein.

“It’s always the big question. People say we rely a lot on Milos. It’s a logical thing. He’s scored 56 goals in two years for us and at some stage, maybe the goals do run out, and he gets an injury or he has a loss of form. And then we have to address it. At the moment it’s not broken, so why fix it? If things aren’t working we’ll address it in a different way. But the way things are at the moment, he’s still the best striker in the state and I’m happy that we’ve got him at the club.”

As well as the new additions to the squad, Taylor is confident his players have the drive to again strive for the top.

“We’ve got a winning mentality in the dressing room and that doesn’t go overnight. You know, we’ve built the dressing room based on the character of players and obviously other clubs are improving and we have to raise the bar a little bit each year. But I still think we’ll be there or thereabouts this year. Which is the main thing, that we’re challenging.”

South Melbourne kicks off its season on Sunday 21 February against traditional rivals Heidelberg United at Lakeside, followed by six away games.