“Tom is a great example of the top-class talent we have in the region forced to look overseas for professional opportunities given the lack of an A-League team here.

“We’ve never had the chance to see Tom in a Socceroos shirt on his home turf since the last World Cup qualifiers in 2015 and I’m sure everyone would love the chance to see him in action again.”

A key plank of the A-League/W-League bid is the proposed city centre-based Canberra stadium - potentially holding 20-25,000.  

What’s more, the ACT Government have funded a $20m home of football set to be built in 2021 at Throsby, a venue which could also house A-League operations.

And without a professional sports franchise in the nation’s capital in summer, the A-League is the missing ingredient for fans as well as proponents of the new stadium.

Caggiano added: “Who knows, this could be the last time we see him in action at GIO Stadium before Canberra gets its new stadium in the city."