Look, if you've been following the Socceroos for any length of time, you know that Tony Popovic doesn't do sentiment. No spot is guaranteed. No player is untouchable. And as we approach the final straight before the World Cup, that ruthless approach is becoming crystal clear.
The CommBank Socceroos will face Cameroon in Sydney on March 27 and Curaçao in Melbourne on March 31, and these matches represent something more than just friendly warmups. For dozens of players fighting for inclusion, they're do-or-die auditions. For Popovic, they're the last real chance to run his eye over the competition before the final squad is locked in at the beginning of June.
The team recently secured a record sixth-straight World Cup berth and qualified directly for the first time since 2014, which is no small achievement. But direct qualification comes with its own pressures; there's no creative narrative about scrappy survival. This time, the Socceroos have to show they belong at the top table.
Fresh blood in the squad
Popovic named three uncapped players for their first Socceroos squad: 18-year-old central defender Lucas Herrington, 28-year-old striker Deni Juric, and 25-year-old attacker Ante Suto. That's not a token gesture. These are genuine opportunities for players who could genuinely force their way into World Cup contention.
18-year-old defender Lucas Herrington began his career at the Brisbane Roar, having been born and raised in Queensland, and made 28 appearances for his childhood club before moving to Colorado Rapids in the MLS this year. Popovic's been monitoring the kid carefully, making sure not to rush him, but you can feel the coach's excitement about the prospect.
Juric, playing for Wisła Płock in Poland, adds another scoring option to a squad missing Norwich City striker Mohamed Toure because of a groin injury. As for Suto, his story is more delicate. The Croatian-born striker has been a "tug-of-war" success for Football Australia, with Popovic confirming he did everything possible to convince Šuto to commit to the Socceroos.
The old guard holds steady
But Popovic isn't swinging wildly into the future. The coach has tossed a cup lifeline to an experienced batch including Awer Mabil, while gifting an uncapped trio chances in Australia's last two home friendlies before soccer's showpiece tournament. The return of Awer Mabil is the other big talking point, with the veteran winger earning a first callup since September 2024 after banging down the selection door with his consistent form.
You've got to hand it to Popovic for the balancing act here. He's not trying to rebuild on the fly; he's threading the needle between continuity and opportunity. 23-year-old Jordy Bos is shaping up to be one of the most important players for Head Coach Tony Popovic at the FIFA World Cup 2026, and the squad will gratefully welcome him back after a minor injury kept him out of November's action, with the player at Eredivisie giants Feyenoord where he is a regular starter at left-back.
The injury list is a real problem though. Midfield linchpin Jackson Irvine, who has captained the Socceroos in the past, was kept out as he recovers from a foot ailment. And towering centre-back Harry Souttar, a standout at Australia's last World Cup campaign, was also overlooked while on the comeback trail from a ruptured Achilles tendon suffered in December 2024, with Popovic considering naming Souttar but opting for the 27-year-old to remain training at Leicester City.
Schwarzer on why team matters more than stars
One of the shrewdest observers of this Socceroos generation is Mark Schwarzer, the legendary keeper who's part of the 2006 World Cup cohort being celebrated during these matches. He's backed Popovic's approach completely, and his reasoning cuts through the noise about individual quality.
Schwarzer said that while "there's experience and there's continuity, which comes into play, you need to have the ability to make changes, have different players that play different roles in the team and make different impacts at different times." He's right. Fair dinkum, the current squad might not have the same star power as the class of 2005-06, but Schwarzer made a striking observation: "I said in 2022 that I thought we would probably send, man for man, our weakest squad to the World Cup, but we were probably our best team at the World Cup that we sent."
That's the point Popovic is making with these final matches. You can have all the individual talents in the world, but if they don't function as a unit, they're just eleven players on the park. At the end of the day, that cohesion is what wins tournaments.
The Socceroos get to say goodbye to the home crowd before heading to California for one last friendly against Mexico, and then the real work begins. By early June, Popovic will have his 26. Some of these young guns will be in it. Some won't. But everyone will have had a fair crack at it. That's the Popovic promise, and it's been working so far.