The former U/17 World Cup final defender has signed for Apia Leichhardt until the end of the NSW Premier League season.

Byrnes, 26, believes by playing regularly in Australia he will be in the shop window for a return to the A-League.

“I think the first thing coaches ask is ‘is he playing regularly’ and ‘where can I see him play?’” he tells au.fourfourtwo.com on a break from training.

The Lambert Park outfit features some talented stock, such as Franco Parisi and ex-Leeds and Mariners man Jamie McMaster, and Byrnes has fitted in well.

“Hopefully doors will open,” says Byrnes. “You’ve got to play to be seen.”

Doors opened nine years ago for the talented defender when he burst onto the scene in 1999 to captain the Australian U/17s at the World Cup in New Zealand.

The Les Scheinflug-coached Joeys – featuring current Socceroos Jade North, Scott McDonald, Josh Kennedy as well as Jess Vanstrattan, Dylan Macallister and Lucas Pantelis – went all the way to the final before a penalty shootout loss to Brazil (in which Byrnes missed his spot kick).

Byrnes was considered one of most promising players – if not the most promising - in a talented Aussie squad.

However, after a 21-match spell at Parramatta Power in the old NSL, Byrnes tried his luck overseas at the turn of the millennium.

Salzburg in the Austrian Bundesliga and Vicenza in Italy were stops on the way before a return to Australia’s NSL with Sydney Olympic and Perth Glory to see out the NSL years.

His 28 appearances in the purple shirt of Perth was the most extended stint he’s had in a stop-start career.

In between the end of the NSL and kick off to the A-League, the former NSW Institute of Sport talent enjoyed a brief stint in Finland with Hameenlinna, a small town in the country’s south.

Byrnes says he’s enjoyed the lifestyle of a traveling footballer but neatly sums up his football thus far: “By no means have I had a career yet but I’ve played in some decent leagues such as the Bundesliga in Austria and in Italy.”

After two seasons in the blue of Victory, and the euphoria of a grand final win was tempered by his release from the club. “I wasn’t too surprised. I guess it was due to circumstances,” he says of the injuries he picked up.

“It was an up and down two seasons for me but it’s a great set up down there."

Injuries have held back much of his development. Last season, Byrnes trialed at Luton Town during the European summer, but an injury again stymied his hopes of winning a contract.

These days Byrnes has just become a father and is also studying commerce part-time at University while playing for the Tigers, who sit in sixth place on 17 points ahead of a clash with Blacktown this weekend.

Byrnes adds: “I think at my age I’ve got a lot more to show.”