When Lewis Miller first spoke to the media after arriving at Hibernian's summer training camp in Portugal in the summer of 2022, his interview was bolshy, brash, and full of bravado; a confident young man who had swapped Sydney for Scotland and was realising his dream of playing football in Europe in the Scottish Premiership, following in the footsteps of many of his compatriots before him.
A little over two years later, a lot has changed. He has had three permanent Hibs managers in Lee Johnson, Nick Montgomery, and now David Gray, while he has a new coach on the international stage as well, having debuted under Graham Arnold and been called up by his successor Tony Popovic during the most recent break.
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"The adrenaline and everything kind of blocks it out, but you have that super high after it goes in and then after the game you have that realisation, when you have family and friends messaging you it kind of levels you - like, ‘Wow, you scored for your country’, which is just surreal, to be honest. It’s probably my greatest achievement in football so far,' he says, when asked how he felt when his header from Craig Goodwin's free-kick hit the back of the net in the 3-1 win against China PR in Adelaide. 
"It's the same story with most footballers, I think. My parents dedicated so much time and effort, especially during my youth, driving me to training. When I was living in Sydney, we had to drive up to the coast, which is an hour and a half, and I had to get there at 7am so we'd get up at about 5.30am. They've dedicated so much of their time, and I’m glad that I can pay them back with the way I'm playing football at the moment."
It's been a long road back for Miller in a personal sense from the Asian Cup in January, when his actions ultimately resulted in Australia's elimination at the hands of South Korea when the Socceroos were in a fairly comfortable position approaching the end of the 90 minutes. It was a testing time for the defender but one from which he has learned lessons.
"You get the highest of the highs and you get the lowest of the lows. That's just football. That's how I play the game. Obviously, that was a very tough part of my career," he admits.
"I think we're heading in the right direction - and now it's time to do it at club level.”
Miller is playing regularly under Gray for Hibs and started Popovic's first two matches in charge of the Socceroos. The two roles are not the same but he is determined to use club games to influence his international game and vice-versa.
“It's a new role, new formation, new coach, new philosophy. I think I fit right in - [Popovic] wants a very physical performance from the wing-backs," Miller explains.
“I think that comes to my advantage because I love going up and down the flanks and defensively, I thought my body positioning for both games was quite good so, it's just a matter of getting a little bit more forward now, creating a bit more. I’ll sink into that role the more I play there and the more I get selected.
"Every coach has their own way of playing as well, don’t they, so it's just a matter of adapting to each style of play, wherever you go. I'd like to think I'm quite adaptable and I'm very eager to perform at both national and club level.
"I like to think of Popovic as a European-style football manager; he wants to play intricate passes, which I love. At Hibs it's a little bit more direct, so I kind of have the best of both worlds. Hopefully this weekend I can combine those two styles of football and we can get out there and get a win.”
Before the international break, Gray spoke about helping Miller specifically, given that he fulfilled the same roles during his own playing days, and said the Sydney-born full-back 'can be anything he wants to be'.
“The gaffer played his role to perfection and he knew exactly what he was doing," Miller says, when asked about Gray's influence.
“That's the plan - just to do what he says and go out there and give it all I've got.”
One element Miller has to deal with that Gray didn't is the travel for international games. Australia's involvement in the Asian Football Confederation normally means at least a couple of planes in each direction just to get to and from Scotland to his homeland, never mind lengthy flights in between - it's around nine or ten hours between Australia and Japan by air - but it's a sacrifice Miller is willing to make to represent his country - even if he does have to contend with the less glamorous side of flying.
"Heathrow was delayed like crazy," he reveals. "I was in the airport for about five, six hours. Missed the first transit flight. So it was a very, very long day. How do I pass the time? I just binge on my phone, watch some Netflix shows. I’ve been watching, or rather re-watching, Peaky Blinders. Unbelievable, that show."
Is it tough to play 172 combined minutes for Australia with all the travelling and then come straight back into games for Hibs?
"I am in a very privileged position to be a footballer, I can't take it for granted. This is the job I have wanted to do since I was a kid. There are no excuses for me."
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