Tony Popovic turned to Nestory Irankunda and his fellow frontline Socceroos stars to ensure the team’s World Cup send-off was sufficiently fitting, and in the second half against Curaçao in Melbourne on Tuesday they elevated an otherwise drab friendly into a grand farewell that finished 5-1.
Together with promising performances from opening goalscorer Awer Mabil and Kai Trewin, who was trialled at right wingback, the performance gave Popovic much to ponder for six weeks before the team’s final pre-tournament camp in the US.
