But not everyone sees it as a fairytale. To many football followers in Japan,they are seen as villains;unwelcome upstarts who have barged their way into J1 with a style of football that is perceived,by some,as overly physical,rough and direct,running against the prevalent trend of possession-based teams.

They also stand accused of trafficking in football’s dark arts – like,for example,one of their strikers has been criticised for splashing water on the ball before taking penalties so as to make it more difficult for the opposing goalkeeper to stop.

“People lose their heads about trying to call this cheating,” Duke says.

“It’s not cheating. But fans of other teams,when it’s against them … people are going to monitor everything. I think people have this image of us now. Maybe a lot of people don’t like the fact that we are at the top,they don’t want us to win,maybe because we’re not playing the typical way that Japanese people would expect …[they] want you to fail more,and they look at other things being like,‘Oh,that’s why they’re winning,because they’re dirty,they’re physical,or they’re doing little cheating things.’ And I think it’s just a little bit of clutching at straws,really.”

Even their geography is being questioned.

The city of Machida is on the far-western outskirts of Tokyo. It is technically part of greater Tokyo,but some locals consider themselves more culturally connected to the neighbouring Kanagawa prefecture. So,in that sense as well,they are deemed to be outsiders,which only makes them more determined to keep sticking it to the region’s traditional powerhouses,FC Tokyo,Urawa Red Diamonds and Yokohama F. Marinos,and prove themselves the best team in Tokyo.

Part of what has driven them to an unlikely title challenge,Duke says,is Kuroda’s ruthlessness at selection. In response to poor results,or even to poor training performances,Kuroda tends to push aside the notion of line-up consistency and is not afraid to make wholesale changes. No player is safe,and that breeds an edginess within the squad that seems to bring out their best.

Duke has been a victim on more than one occasion,and while earlier this year he was thinking about leaving to find more regular minutes elsewhere – and to boost his Socceroos prospectsfor the next round of World Cup qualifying – his personal fortunes have improved,and he is keen to see out the season and find out where the journey ends.

“I’m loving being part of this whole ride,to be honest,” he says.

“We made history for the club last year,winning the J2 and being promoted,and now we’re ready to do more. That’s what you look for as a professional player. I’ve been a part of certain moments with clubs,and even international level with our last World Cup – you want to be a part of history,making history and making some noise,and being a part of a squad that’s doing that. Things like that,you look back on,and you feel special to be a part of it. And I’m looking forward to being a part of a bit more this year.”