SINGAPORE -- Seven games into the new season, Lion City Sailors will finally not have to be the "away" team any longer.
And considering the run of form they have been on following a slow start to the campaign, there appears to be no better time for them to start enjoying some home comforts.
Over a month since the new campaign started, refurbishment works to their home ground -- as well as the luck of the draw -- meant that the Sailors are yet to play at Bishan Stadium after six games across four competitions.
Their sole "home" game in the Singapore Premier League so far took place at Our Tampines Hub, while they began both their ASEAN Club Championship and AFC Champions League Two campaigns on the road.
But with Bishan now ready, the Sailors are excited at their impeding return -- starting with Wednesday's ACL Two clash with Malaysia Super League outfit Selangor.
"I'm very happy that, for the first time in the three months, we play at home for the first time," said Sailors coach Aleksandar Ranković in Tuesday's pre-match news conference.
"We started this campaign, including the domestic league, with [six] 'away' games. It makes us very, very happy that we can finally play at home.
"There's no pressure. These guys [the players] have been through his stage already for a long time. They're all experienced enough.
"I think we should enjoy every moment. There is not really any pressure."
The Sailors enjoyed a brilliant campaign in 2024-25 as they won the domestic league and cup double, while also making history in reaching the ACL Two final -- becoming the first Singaporean club to reach a continental decider in the process.
But after losing their opening two games of the campaign, including a humbling 4-1 loss to BG Tampines Rovers in the Community Shield, any suspicions of a hangover have been emphatically dispelled.
In their three league outings, the Sailors have claimed a maximum nine points -- racking up a staggering 14 goals while conceding just once -- and also showed impressive resolve to equalise late for a 1-1 draw away to Persib Bandung last time out in the ACL Two.
While he admits their start to the new season was far from ideal, Ranković is optimistic their early stutters are now a thing of the past.
"We started a little bit slowly but it had to do with a lot of factors," the Serb explained.
"We didn't have our squad [fully] ready, we had a shorter pre-season than normal. It soulds a little bit like excuses that I don't want to make, but we didn't have enough friendly games in pre-season so we are now catching up a little.
"Of course, we had some injuries but we've got some players back. Everything is now getting into place. Now, the challenge is for me and my team to keep this momentum going."
The Sailors will head into Wednesday's clash as favourites against a Selangor side whose early-season struggles led to the dismissal of coach Katsuhito Kinoshita last week.
Nonetheless, the derby nature of the tie -- given the fierce Singapore-Malaysia rivalry -- could see the form book go out the window, especially given Selangor's last competitive outing saw them claim an impressive 4-2 win over another SPL team in Tampines in the ASEAN Club Championship.
The prospect of the extra bragging rights on offer, in addition to the three points, is not lost on Sailors defender Bailey Wright, who has experienced his fair share of regional rivalry in his time in Singapore -- including earlier this season when they suffered a 3-1 loss to MSL champions Johor Darul Ta'zim on the regional stage.
"Historically, there's always been a rivalry," acknowledged the Australia international. "It's nice to play in any game with a bit of rivalry.
"It'll have an edge and, hopefully, with that comes a good following. I'm sure we'll get plenty of our fans behind us and I'm sure they'll have a few of their own supporters supporting them.
"I think our [ACL Two] run last year proved that we we're just representing the club but also Singapore as a country and a whole footballing nation.
"That's something we can sort of use again tomorrow."