So much for Asia providing an easy World Cup qualifying path for the Socceroos!
After the disaster that has been Australia's first foray into the Asian Cup, right now you would even say that our old rivals New Zealand have as much chance of qualifying for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa as the Socceroos do.
Now that might seem a bold call given the Socceroos - who reached the second round of the 2006 finals in Germany - are currently ranked number 49 on FIFA's official rankings while the Kiwis are way down the list at 148 of the 208 countries who are members of the world game's governing body.
But it's not such a bold call when you consider the respective qualifying paths the two teams will take when the official draw is made on November 25.
With Australia having moved to Asia, New Zealand is the now the kingpin of the rump that is known as the Oceania confederation but this time the winner of that confederation will not have to face a two legged play-off with the fifth-placed team from the tough South American confederation - which the Socceroos had to against Uruguay in attempting to qualify for the 2002 and 2006 World Cups.
Instead this time the winner of Oceania will play off against the fifth-placed Asian nation for the right to go to South Africa in 2010.
That's right, the same confederation Australia now finds itself in.
But while New Zealand's only remote opposition for the right to take on the fifth-placed Asian nation come November, 2009, will be the Solomon Islands and Fiji, the Socceroos face an enormous challenge to finish among the top five Asian nations, let alone the top four that will receive automatic tickets to South Africa.
Remember they have failed to reach the semi-finals of their first Asian Cup meaning that right now those teams that did in Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and Iraq could all rightly claim to be better sides than the Socceroos.
Then there are the likes of fellow beaten quarter-finalists Iran and Uzbekistan, who could also rightly claim they are better teams than the Socceroos right now.
Throw in China, which was the other big disappointment of these championships but is considered a powerhouse in the region, and even dangerous teams which did not even qualify for this tournament such as Jordan and Kuwait - which beat the Socceroos during Asian Cup qualifying - and you realise just how tough the path to South Africa is going to be for the Socceroos.
It also highlights just how important it is for Football Federation of Australia (FFA) to secure an experienced coach, someone proven at international level, to ensure the Socceroos make the necessary improvement to reach the 2010 World Cup.
The Socceroos need another Guus Hiddink badly with Graham Arnold's lack of international experience as a manager showing out during the Asian Cup.
Not only did Arnold pick the wrong team during the first two matches - how Patrick Kisnorbo and Brett Holman were picked ahead of Michael Beauchamp and Archie Thompson respectively will remain one of the great sporting mysteries - but the team also struggled with its preparation and never fully acclimatised to the hot and humid conditions while Arnold also seemed to struggle with the public demands of the national job as well.
All is not lost for the Socceroos though and at least everyone now, from the FFA down to the average fan in the street, realises that qualification for the next World Cup cannot be taken for granted.
But with the right man in charge and a little bit of luck, the Socceroos may yet get the chance to replicate their heroics of Germany in 2006 but it's far from a certainty as we speak.