What a difference a year makes for Vasco Mariners who have gone from unbeatable last season to languishing in the bottom two this campaign.Vasco swept all aside last term, not losing a single game in their league campaign, while having to go to extra time in their Bitro Cup loss to North Village before suffering their only loss of the season.Fast forward ten months and the club are in tenth place, 19 points off top spot held by Tuff Dogs and BAA.The side have three wins, three draws and seven losses so far in the campaign.Coach Joe Barbosa, however, hasn’t called the season a complete failure given the mass exodus of players during the offseason for various reason.“This season has not gone as well as we’d hoped,” said Barbosa. “It’s always difficult to repeat being champions and it’s even more difficult when the nucleus of a winning team is no longer together.“We lost the majority of our championiship team to other Corona league teams and a few players decided they didn’t want to commit this year.“Additionally, we’ve been a little unlucky with injuries and cards in the first half of the season.“This season’s record isn’t anything to brag about but we’ve actually been very competitive and lost a significant amount of games by the odd goal. We hope to better that in the second half of the season.”Barbosa pointed at new signings and the return of injured players into the fold as reasons to be optimistic that the second half of the season can be a launching pad for next year’s campaign.Although the side aren’t the same as last year, the team harmony hasn’t left.“We’re getting a few additional players sign up and a few others back from injury, so I’m hopeful we’ll have a better second half of the season. I don’t feel a sense of underachieving as we’re going through the process of rebuilding the team.“It’s hard to compare to last year when your teams are vastly different and it would be unfair to continue that comparison.“That’s what makes last year special. You never know how long your time at the time will last.“Camaraderie among the players is still very good and confidence is starting to come back into our play, which is good to see.”