As far as debuts go, Nishan Velupillay’s Subway Socceroos bow was about as good as it gets.
Velupillay capped his Socceroos debut with a goal as Tony Popovic capped his first game in charge with a come-from-behind 3-1 win over China in Thursday night’s 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup qualifier.
The Melbourne Victory star was a shock selection in Popovic’s maiden squad for the crucial showdown at Adelaide Oval and the 23-year-old came off the bench to seal the result in the second minute of injury time after Lewis Miller and Craig Goodwin had responded to Xie Wenneng’s opener.
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Velupillay found the back of the net in emphatic fashion as the Socceroos won for the first time in Round 3 qualifying in front of a record crowd in Adelaide, having managed just one point from their first two fixtures.
“It means a lot. I think it all happened really quickly but I’m happy my debut went like that,” Velupillay told Football Australia post-match.
“I was busy appealing for a penalty for Aido (Aiden O’Neill) but then the ball fell to me and I was like alright, have a swing at it and see what happens,” he said of his late strike.
“Thankfully it went in and it was good to see all the boys get around me. The fact we got a win is really good too.”
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Velupillay, who entered the Round 3 qualifier having scored five goals for Victory en route to the 2024 Australia Cup final, added: “The boys have made me feel welcome. So far it’s been a pleasure to play with them. You can see already we’re adapting to a new style but I think the boys jumped on board really well.”
“I’m happy and privileged to be here. It’s very special. I feel very honoured to play for Australia.”
Velupillay was not the only Victory player to impress against China, with teammate Jason Geria also coming off the bench to great effect.
Geria earned his second Socceroos cap and first since 2016 after replacing Thomas Deng at half-time.
“This is something I’ve wanted to do for such a long time,” the 31-year-old told Football Australia.
“Being able to do it only once, which is eight years ago which is hard to believe. It felt like I had my debut again to be honest.
“It’s a privilege to be here. I don’t really have too many words. I’m just happy to be back.
“It’s an honour to play for Australia. I’ll really cherish tonight and hopefully this is the start of a few more games but you have to earn every cap. I truly believe that.
“It’s up to the boss if I play the next game or not. Then I have to work to get into the next camps. It’s not a given being here. I’m really happy with tonight but I have to work hard to play the next game.”
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Popovic worked with Velupillay and Geria during his three-year tenure at Victory and the new Socceroos boss heaped praise on both players post-match.
“They both contributed which is most important,” Popovic said in his post-match press conference after the Socceroos moved second in the standings, five points behind Japan ahead of Tuesday’s clash in Saitama.
“I felt they deserved to be here so there was no hesitation to put them on in a moment I felt we needed add an impact player to the game.
“I thought Jase looked very assured at the back, confident. I’m very happy for him.
“For Nish, it’s a dream debut. You come on and score. In many, many years to come he will talk about that goal. Hopefully that’s the first of many for him.”
