To see the Roos train in South Africa...
 

While his ability to switch from wide to central positions is one of the reasons he is in Pim Verbeek's final 28 for the World Cup, he is often asked to play in unfamiliar roles in an unfamiliar system.

His Japanese club side JEF United, currently in J2-League, plays a very different system to the Socceroos and since he arrived in Japan, he has played a variety of midfield and defensive roles.

But on Monday night against New Zealand, Milligan, highly-rated by Verbeek, was given his chance to show what he has to offer the national team at rightback, playing 90 minutes.

While he admitted playing wide in a back four is a little unfamiliar to him in recent times, he felt he improved constantly over the 90 minutes.

"It was a bit of a different role for me. I haven't played in that role for a long time," he said. "I think we all started off a little bit shaky.

"As the game went on, I felt a lot more comfortable as I think the boys around me did too. It was good to get 90 minutes under my belt and good to get the win."

Milligan, who since making the 2006 World Cup squad has played for Sydney FC, Newcastle Jets, Shanghai Shenhua and now JEF, was in a new look backfour with staples Lucas Neill and Craig Moore flanked by he and former Sydney team-mate David Carney on the left.

While Milligan has been playing regularly in Japan and Neill has been playing plenty of football for Galatasaray, the other pair in the starting back four have had limited game time in 2010.

Milligan said it took some time to adapt considering all four players all come from four different clubs in four different countries with four different systems.

"It is a little bit difficult, because everyone is coming from their clubs and every club plays a different way and have a different line," he said.

"A lot of teams push and a lot of teams sit, so once you get the bearing for each other, it works.

"That's why we play these games in the lead-up to the World Cup, to get everything in sync and everything together and make sure it's alright for the right time."

Verbeek sees Milligan as a bit of a Mr Fixit in defence and when the squad of 28 was flashed up on the screen on Wednesday, Milligan was placed as Moore's understudy in the centre of defence.

The reason he played on the right on Monday was that Luke Wilkshire was rested while Rhys Williams is still getting back to full fitness after a groin injury.

But Milligan is happy to go where Verbeek wants him to and knows that versatility will serve him well when the Dutchman sits down to work out his final 23 on June 1.

Milligan's life has been as nomadic off the field as it has been on it in recent years, but he feels settled and happy in Japan and feels he is making considerable progress as a player.

He added: "I'm at a great club, we are doing extremely well and obviously our goal is for promotion and we're heading in the right direction.

"We are sitting in second at the moment, so we're just hoping we keep going the way we are over there and everything will fall in place."

To see the Roos train in South Africa...