As other teams start to fade in the second half amid the sapping heat of the Australian summer, Sydney FC seem to have found another gear. Their march to the top of the table has been built on strong finishes, so much so that the players boast they are the fittest team in the competition. With the statistics backing them up, it's hard to argue.

The Sky Blues won six games at the death this season and found a late equaliser to another. More than two thirds of Sydney's 44 goals have been scored after half-time, and almost half of them in the final 15 minutes of games.

However, it's their defensive record at the tail end of games that is the most telling. The Sky Blues are yet to suffer a collapse let alone a capitulation. Central Coast Mariners defender Scott Galloway is the only player to have scored against the Sky Blues after the 75th minute this season while Sydney's goalkeeper Danny Vukovic picked the ball out of his own net on just three occasions during a second-half this campaign.

But if the injury ward is the best measure of fitness and conditioning, then the barren list at Moore Park tells the story. A freak hamstring injury incurred mid-game for Seb Ryall is the only injury Sydney FC have been dealt this season and reducing that toll from previous years has been the main focus for their strength and conditioning coach, Andrew Clark.