Postecoglou, however, has set about those hopes in much the same way as David Warner famously sets about offensively fresh-faced opponents in trendy Birmingham nightspot, The Walkabout, delivering an uppercut to Neill's delusions of relevance by dropping him for the friendly with Ecuador on 5 March. Naturally, given that Australia are preparing for a perilous expedition against fearsome predators in subtropical, high-altitude venues, their warm-ups have also been arranged for hostile environments, the game against Ecuador taking place at Millwall.

"Good consistent form means that the door will always be ajar," offered Postecoglou when asked whether there is any chance of Neill being recalled for the World Cup, though the rest of the manager's explanation suggested that if the door really is ajar, then it is only because there is a bucket of water balanced precariously on top of it lest Neill try to enter. It seems, then, Postecoglou has decided to use the World Cup as an opportunity to integrate a new generation of Socceroos – Soccerjoeys perhaps – in preparation for next year's Asian Cup, which Australia are hosting, and the 2018 World Cup, which Australia are currently contemplating with all the optimism of a lovelorn Nick Cave character. "When you look at our experienced players, there aren't many of them who are playing at the highest level, if any," mourned Postecoglou. "It makes sense to me to start looking at building a new core in the team."

That new core could include Newcastle's Curtis Good, Aston Villa's Chris Herd, Fortuna Dusseldorf's Ben Halloran and Swindon Town's Massimo Luongo, all of whom are in line to win their first caps against Ecuador. "They have been rewarded for playing consistent and strong football and it shows that age and limited international experience are not barriers to opportunity," said Postecoglou, offering a long-winded Australian translation of the adage "beggars can't be choosers".