Speedster Awer Mabil capped his maiden appearance for Australia with a goal that was made possible by Thomas Deng who won the ball to set up the attack.

But the moment of exhilaration, shared between the two debutants for all the world to see, was about far more than putting the ball in the back of the net.

And when their opportunity came, in the 88th minute, they took it with the composure of hardened veterans.

"It was very special,” Mabil told Fox Sports.

“Flashback nine years ago and we were playing in the park together with our friends and we could never dream of this, the way it has happened today.

“It’s amazing it has happened, we have to thank Australia for giving us this opportunity. It’s a big dream come true.”

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Mabil, 23, who plays for Danish powerhouse FC Midtjylland, and Melbourne Victory defender Deng, 21, were both raised in South Australia after fleeing war-torn Africa as children.

Deng added: “We’ve known each other for almost nine years or more now, growing up in the same neighbourhood.

“It’s something we should be very proud of and our families and people that are close to us should be proud of.

“We’ve both opened doors for a lot of young Africans coming up. I hope there’s more to come.”

Mabil and Deng represented all that was good about the new era Socceroos under coach Graham Arnold. Apostolos Giannou, leading the line scored his first goal for the Socceroos on 21 minutes, after an own goal by Khalid Mohamed Ibrahim broke the deadlock just 12 minutes in.

And while the first half was dominated by more experienced heads it was the injection of Gen Next just after the hour that turned the switch. Daniel Arzani, Mustafa Amini and Alex Gersbach all got minutes on the park.

With less than 10 minutes on the clock Celtic star Tomi Rogic scored before Mabil completed the rout.

“That goal is for my mother, she sacrificed a lot for me and my family,” Mabil said. “She is a single mother so she went through a lot. That’s especially for her.”

Deng added: “There’s been a lot of sacrifices along the way, especially our families. My mum is also a single mother, so this is for her.

“Everything that she’s done for me, all the days she’s been dropping me to training it’s finally paid off. So I’m very happy, she should be very proud of her son and I hope she saw this game.”