A lot has happened since Lucas and Diesel Herrington last saw each other.
In June, older brother Diesel attended the Socceroos’ World Cup opener against Turkey, where teenage phenomenon Lucas was an unused substitute.
Since then, Lucas, 19, has made his World Cup debut, secured a move to the Premier League and debuted and started for Hull City.
Fellow centre-back Diesel, 22, is finally injury-free at Central Coast and earned a maiden a call-up for upcoming friendlies against Qatar on November 13 (November 14 AEDT) and Jordan three days later.
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“It’s been unreal,” Diesel said.
“I haven’t seen him since the first game of the World Cup, so obviously it’s great to see him again.
“I get to see him on the field and competing against each other, so it’s been great
“This last week I’d say hasn’t really felt real. I’ve been really blown back by it and really enjoying it so far.”
Diesel, 22, is daring to dream of a once-unlikely Socceroos debut and playing for Australia alongside his brother.
“It’d be a dream come true,” he said.
“Wow. Honestly, I think that’s the only words I can think of right now – just a dream come true.”
The Herringtons, Eli Adams and new call-ups Sam Klein and Thomas Waddingham are all from Queensland.
“We have some time to make up for because we haven’t seen each other too much,” Diesel Herrington told Football Australia’s media team.
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Herrington had played just 17 games and made six starts due to injuries in his first two years at Central Coast.
But he has played the full 90 minutes in each of the Mariners’ four A-League Men games this season, relishing working under a “really fantastic coach” in John Hutchinson.
Herrington is one of the beneficiaries of coach Tony Popovic casting a wider net this window.
The friendlies were initially meant to help with final preparations for the Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia, which has now been pushed back 11 months.
“All the boys are obviously looking forward to what we can do that’s in front of us right now, and right now that’s to play the Qatar game,” Herrington said.
“Everyone in camp has been very focused, switched on and all attention to that game.”
It remains unclear whether the Jordan friendly in Amman will be rescheduled or cancelled amid security concerns in the region.
