Luke Brattan always believed he deserved a Socceroos berth - and so did many of his contemporaries.
Now 34, the midfielder who received his first and only call-up under Ange Postecoglou in 2018, is still uncapped.
But Massimo Luongo and Connor Metcalfe's injuries opened the door for the Macarthur FC skipper's late call-up under new coach Tony Popovic.
"It was a little bit of a shock," Brattan told AAP ahead of Tuesday's World Cup qualifier against Japan in Saitama.
"Obviously, I found out I was in the extended squad, and then was on my way to training Saturday morning and got the message. So it was just exciting.
"The highest honour you can really reach is to play for your country.
"I'm still looking to do that.
"But it's great to be back in this environment with a great bunch of boys, and all the staff are fantastic as well."
Brattan has consistently been among the league's top midfielders across stints at Brisbane Roar, Melbourne City, Sydney FC and now Macarthur - without the caps to show for it.
"I always believed that I should be here," he said.
"I'm a little bit further on than some of these boys, but I still feel really good, and I still think I've been playing reasonably well.
"So I never really thought that it was done.
"But I'm just positive, and I'm looking forward to the future."
Newly recalled defender Jason Geria can't believe Brattan was consistently overlooked.
"He's one of those guys, him and (Sydney FC midfielder) Anthony Caceres, I don't know how, over the last five years, they haven't been involved more. Curtis Good as well," he said.
"I could run off a lot of names, but I'm really happy for Brattsy.
"Because he's someone who, especially in his time in Sydney, he was excellent in his first few years, and won so many trophies and just consistently had good performances."
Like close friend Bruno Fornaroli has experienced, Brattan knows Popovic won't take age into consideration.
"If you're good enough, and if you're playing well enough, then age doesn't play a factor at all," Brattan said.
"When I go back to my club, I need to do a little bit extra to bridge that gap. So I'll now do that.
"Now that I'm here, I want to stay here, so I'll do everything I can to be in squads in the future."
And Brattan has another major motivation at play - his two daughters getting their heads around his newfound resurgence.
"Everything I do is for them," he said.
"So it's great to see them excited and see the smiles on their faces."
