As Brian Kaltak lifted the A-League Men championship trophy mere months after landing his first professional deal, back home in Vanuatu, fans packed into a stadium to celebrate their football hero.
Screens were set up on the pitch of the 6,500-seater Freshwater Stadium in Port Vila, allowing locals to watch Vanuatu's first professional footballer play the biggest game of his career.
It proved a joyous, milestone occasion, as Central Coast's 29-year-old defensive revelation played a key role in the Mariners' stunning 6-1 win over Melbourne City at CommBank Stadium.
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"It means a lot," Kaltak, draped in the Vanuatu flag, told reporters. "We've been trying to get the breakthrough, getting kids overseas, not just Australia and New Zealand but to get professional. It just didn't happen.
"But now that I'm here and the first one, it's amazing.
"To be honest, back home in Vanuatu right now, it's like we won the World Cup, everyone just celebrating this moment."
CommBank Stadium even hosted Vanuatu prime minister Ishmael Kalsakau, who flew in for the occasion and embraced and congratulated Kaltak afterwards.
"I was so excited to see them here," Kaltak said. "I didn't even know they were here until one of the management came running up to me and said: 'Your prime minister is here!'
"Then it was just amazing to see them here."
Brian Kaltak embracing The Honourable Prime Minister of the Republic of Vanuatu, Alatoi Ishmael Kalsakau