Australia ended its 12-year Olympic exile last month when they booked a spot in the Tokyo Games with a third-place finish in the AFC Under-23 Championships in Thailand, beating Uzbekistan 1-0.
Midfielder Bouman, who featured in five of the six tournament matches, is confident Australia can make a splash in Japan and challenge for a medal.
“We don’t want to just go there and play a couple of matches,” he told The World Game.
“The belief ever since my first camp kept getting bigger and bigger. By the end of the Uzbekistan match you sort of feel like as a team we could do anything.
“When we go to Japan we wont be there just to fill up the numbers, we want to show the world the young players of Australia are here and can make a statement.”
Bouman, who plays his club football in Holland for SC Cambuur, believes the tightness and camaraderie of this Olyroos squad played a huge role in securing qualification.
The self-confidence of the team and the belief instilled by Socceroos boss Graham Arnold was key, according to the 22-year-old.
“Arnie was really proud of us, and he was the whole tournament,” he said.
“Every match he’s seen that we progressed and, for example, in the first match we were only playing at 50% or 60%. Every match the team grew together.
“[He said] it was one of, if not the, highlights of his coaching career so far. You could see how much it meant to him, even before the match, which came across to us.
“It was something to make us give our all.
“It was truly amazing [to qualify]. When I think about where I was six, seven months ago - I’d just moved to Cambuur and I’d never been with the national team.
“Getting called up the first time was amazing in itself. If you’d asked me seven months ago if I’d be in that position I would have said 'no, are you dreaming?'.
“It’s a really good bunch of lads, it really felt that we were a team. I think that’s one of the reasons why we got as far as we did and ultimately qualified, because of the team-building.
“Even the boys on the bench, everybody was excited, you could see everybody celebrating with each other. It wasn’t any easy tournament, at all. The weather, I think people underestimate how warm it was there and how draining it was.
“The last match against Uzbekistan you could see how much it all meant to us. Once Nick scored the goal and at the end of the match the celebrations, it was really awesome.”
Born in Holland but raised in Sydney, the former GHFA Spirit, Manly United and Blacktown City junior returned to Europe six years ago.
Last year he left Dutch side Groningen to join Eerste Divisie outfit SC Cambuur. But Bouman admits it has been a tough season for him with first-team opportunities limited.
“It was obviously a step up at the beginning when I first moved from Groningen,” he explained. “For the first time I really joined a first-team.
"It’s been difficult. The training standard is awesome, it’s a high level.
“Our first-team team is doing really well, we’re coming first. Promotion is a good thing but also it’s not been the best for me - the team is doing well so the trainer hasn’t changed many things around.”
Off-contract at the end of this season, Bouman is on the hunt for a new club where he can break into senior football. And the attacking midfielder admits he would consider a return to Australia to play in the A-League.
“I’ve spoken with the club recently about my future, as I only have a one-year contract,” he said.
“They want me to be making as many minutes as I can but unfortunately it probably won’t fit in with Cambuur and their future. So I’m looking around.
“To be honest, the most important thing is getting first-team minutes and matches. Wherever that is – in Europe, in Australia – wherever I think I can get matches in.”
With the Olyroos headed to Tokyo in July for the Olympics, Bouman has an extra goal to secure more regular football.
“100% that’s another incentive,” he said.
“The club also knows that we’ve qualified and they know it’s also a difficult squad to get selected in. The squad for the Olympics goes to an 18-man squad and we had 23 in Thailand.
“Then you’ve got the couple of over-age players, who knows what Arnie will do with that. Then you’ve also got a couple of players who were a bit injured or weren’t able to go by the clubs.
“So you’ve got to keep your form up, keep making minutes back at your club and hope you get selected.
