Luongo, the hard running midfielder and now a regular fixture in the national team, had started for a Rangers side that had begun their Championship campaign in reasonable style and were expected to take three points from this game to consolidate a decent beginning to a potential promotion campaign.

Wright, the tough, combative Preston central defender, is also mainstay at his Lancastrian club these days. The Melbournian has, quietly and unobtrusively, also become a regular in Ange Postecoglou's starting 11 and, like Luongo, is sure to be prominent in the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Iraq in Perth next Thursday (September 1) and the United Arab Emirates in Abu Dhabi the following week.

The duo embraced at the final whistle and while their teammates quickly left the field, the pair stood and chatted, comparing notes not just on the game just concluded but the task awaiting them as the World Cup qualifying programme reaches the pointy end.

Both players were part of the group blooded but not used in matches by Postecoglou at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. The benefits quickly became apparent for Luongo, who not only announced himself as a Socceroo for the future in the Asian Cup of 2015 but ended up being named player of the tournament.

Wright was not part of that Asian Cup-winning squad, but has made up for lost time. In the 21 months since Mile Jedinak​ lifted the continental trophy that memorable night in Sydney, Wright has played a major role in Socceroos teams due to his no-frills game and ability to shut down skilful forwards.

The clash between two Socceroos in the English Championship is not an unfamiliar sight these days, as several Australian squad members now play their football in England's second tier.

Jackson Irvine, the former Ross County midfielder, became Burton Albion's record signing (at £325,000) when he joined the small town club in the off-season, spearheading Burton's first ever campaign at the second highest level of the English game.

Aaron Mooy​, consistently described by Postecoglou as the best player in the A-League when starring for Melbourne City in recent seasons, is also lighting up the league with his displays for early pacesetters Huddersfield Town.

And of course national team captain Jedinak has now dropped down a division from the Premier League to add his experience and promotion-winning know-how to Aston Villa, the giant Birmingham club relegated to the Championship after an abject 2015-16 campaign.

A decade ago the situation was rather different, as most of the Socceroos' key men were all flying high with clubs that were then Premier League big boys. These included Mark Viduka​, first with Leeds and then Middlesbrough and Newcastle (Viduka), and also Harry Kewell with Liverpool.

Brett Emerton and Lucas Neill were at Blackburn before Neill moved to West Ham, Mark Schwarzer was at Boro and then Fulham, John Aloisi​ had been at Coventry before he moved to Spain's La Liga,  Craig Moore was at Newcastle, Vince Grella​ too had a spell at Blackburn.

Those players were at the peak of their powers unlike the current internationals, save Jedinak.  They should improve plenty.

That Australians now find it hard to make it in the EPL or gain contracts with big clubs in the Serie A (as did Grella and Mark Bresciano​) has as yet not had a deleterious impact on the national team's fortunes, although it will be interesting to see how Postecoglou's developing squad fare against the tougher opponents – Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Thailand and Japan – that they face in this final section of qualifying.

The diminution of Australian names in the Premiership could be because the current crop of players have yet to reach the level required, or it might simply be that it is now so much harder than it was, even 10 or 15 years ago, to gain a spot on a Premier League side's roster.

The competition might not be the highest quality league in the world (certainly the last few years Champions League results would suggest that Spain's La Liga holds sway) but it is certainly the most competitive, and for players from all over the world the Premiership is a magnet because of the huge wages on offer. While the biggest stars make massive money in Spain. Germany and Italy, relatively "average" players can be handsomely rewarded in England, making it harder than it once was for Australians to break through.

Still, for all their big name stars, the Premiership and Serie A-laden Socceroo sides of the past did struggle at times in away games against Middle Eastern opposition where the heat, travel and logistics all had a big impact on performances, if not always outcomes.

Mooy has made a tremendous start to his English career. Signed from Melbourne City by parent club Manchester City and then immediately loaned out to Huddersfield, Mooy has been a key figure for the Terriers in their march to the top of the early season Championship table.

Huddersfield's most impressive result was when the Yorkshire team travelled to Newcastle, runaway favourites for the Championship title, and won 2-0, Mooy playing a major role in the victory.

There is no reason why the shaven-headed Sydneysider cannot prosper in the Championship or at a higher level: certainly his performance against England in the friendly in late May suggested he was not out of place in such company.

Irvine has a big challenge on his hands – Burton are expected to struggle in a division they have never reached before. Not too much should be read into their 5-0 League Cup defeat against Liverpool earlier this week; they are better judged on their 3-1 win over last season's play-off finalists, Sheffield Wednesday, than on their Liverpool result.

Irvine's high energy game should be ideal for the Championship, and he acknowledged that was his strength in an interview pre-season with the local paper Burton Mail.

"I know how tough it's going to be – I've never played at this level before so to have a bit of time to adjust and make myself part of this squad is going to be tough. But it's a challenge I'm looking forward to.

"I bring energy and I like to get about the park. They want to continue to progress."

We are all used to seeing Jedinak with the captain's armband at Selhurst Park, his home for the past five seasons.

The Socceroos skipper led Palace to promotion through the play-offs and has helped consolidate them as a Premier League side these past few years, also skippering them to last season's FA Cup Final extra time defeat against Manchester United.

But it became clear during the off-season that he wasn't going to figure in Alan Pardew's plans, and it was a sad sight for the South London club's faithful when he ran to the crowd at the end of the season-opening 1-0 home loss to West Bromwich Albion earlier this month and threw them his shirt in a farewell gesture.

Within days he was gone, a £4 million move to the Midlands and a lucrative three-year contract under his belt.

Jedinak has been here before in the Championship and knows just what is needed to get a team promoted.

Villa's gain may be Palace's loss, especially if the two clubs swap places this season, an outcome not beyond the realms of possibility.