The A-League giants who have never made a W-League finals campaign, this is the first season that Sydney's west has truly had a squad capable of winning the Championship.

That creates a huge amount of pressure for a new squad and coach, but Dean Heffernan has a unique ability to assuage this feeling, having experienced it all as a player for the Wanderers himself.

“I was coming towards the end of my career when I was paying for the Wanderers, but straight away you could tell that it carried a lot of weight to wear the Wanderers jersey," he told The Women's Game.

"There was a lot of expectation, and this was only in the second year.

"There was always a lot of expectation to always do well, to compete, to work hard, to get better every day, and there’s definitely that feeling around the club today."

While Heffernan had a myriad of experiences abroad and domestically in a storied career, he now emerges as a W-League coach fresh to the women's game.

To help build on the beginner's luck, he also has three of the finest foreign signings to grace the league - NWSL champions Kristen Hamilton, Lynn Williams and Denise O'Sullivan - to further glamourise a talent-packed lineup.

He says his experience coaching at A-League youth level will serve him well in his biggest challenge so far.

“My time with the U20’s in the NYL was something that I’ll always look very fondly back on," he said.

"I’ve gained a lot of experience from those days as a coach there, and now it’s just kind of spring boarded me into this role with the W-League.

“All of those experiences and knowing what the expectations are behind wearing the Wanderers badge can only set us up and guide the players for what it means to be a Wanderer and to play and represent the West."

While the Wanderers will kick off their campaign at Marconi Stadium against Adelaide United tonight, there is another experience awaiting the W-League side this season.

The chance to draw big crowds in derbies and double headers to the club's new Bankwest Stadium in Sydney.

The stadium has the chance to etch itself in female forlore this season, after the Matildas broke the all-time attendance record for female football against Chile at the venue less than a week ago.

“As a player, when you walk out onto any pitch, it’s a beautiful stadium and its brand new," Heffernan said.

“We’ll have a couple of curtain raisers to the A-League games, we’ll hopefully play games after the A-League as well, so we’ll still have big crowds.

“When you walk out onto a stadium like that, it definitely lifts you in terms of performance...and a bit of adrenaline as well."

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