Luke Brattan's Socceroos debut took 34 years to arrive and lasted 50 minutes.
But the veteran midfielder won't ever forget it.
With Aiden O'Neill ill, Brattan was called upon to start alongside Jackson Irvine in Tuesday night's huge clash with Japan at Saitama Stadium.
It was a difficult outing for the 34-year-old, who struggled against a Japanese outfit that dominated possession and were speedy on and off the ball, and he was ultimately hooked at half-time for Patrick Yazbek.
Australia went on to draw the game 1-1.
"That was my chance and I'm super happy," Brattan said.
"It was a tough game. Obviously the first game, first start to be away in Japan, it's pretty special. They're a fantastic team and so organised, so quick, so the quality is so good.
"I thought that I handled it fairly well and obviously can improve and definitely get better and I'm just super stoked at the moment."
Brattan was called up by Ange Postecoglou in 2016 but didn't debut - and had to wait eight years for a second crack.
"Football's pretty funny but I couldn't be more grateful," he said.
"This is the best achievement of my career by far. It's such an honour to play for your country and just standing there, singing the national anthem, it's so special. Having my girls back home watching, it's very special."
Popovic wasn't specifically asked about Brattan in regards to his changes, but mentioned him anyway.
"Luke Brattan had a debut at 34 years old," he said.
"Yes, it was difficult in the first half for everyone on the ball, but that's the type of player we are looking for in the midfield.
"We want to have one technical player, so we'll be searching for that definitely and I'm sure a special day for Luke Brattan today."
Brattan, who will return to club side Macarthur FC for the start of the A-League Men season, was determined to repay Popovic's faith.
"It's great. Obviously we didn't have an awful lot of the ball so I wasn't able to get on the ball and pass it around," he said.
"But it's great for me to have his backing and for him to have the trust in me, to put me in in a game this big is pretty special. I can't wait for more.
"Just excited for what's next. The boss has brought in a different style of play and with the coaching staff it's very exciting - I think we can do something special."
