Eight appearances on the bench under Ange Postecoglou never yielded any match minutes for the 26-year-old, whose last call-up was a year ago.
He missed out on the FIFA World Cup with Bert van Marwijk at the helm, but has quietly kept plugging away in a respected European league.
And the chance has arrived, yet again, to stake a claim, as Graham Arnold assesses his midfield depth in the wake of ex-skipper Mile Jedinak’s international retirement.
Jeggo might be a long shot to start in Saturday’s duel against Korea Republic in Brisbane or the clash with Lebanon in Sydney three days later, but he’s aiming to at least give Arnold something to ponder.
In his fourth season in Austria - the nation of his birth - the former Melbourne Victory and Adelaide United man said: “I’ve definitely improved and changed as a player since I’ve come over to Europe.
“That was the idea. Europe is more cutthroat than what you experience back in Australia, and there’s the chance to take your game to another level.
“I certainly hope and think that’s been the case with me. I play a lot deeper than I used to in Australia and it’s a very different role.
“It’s something I’ve grown into and it’s definitely how I see myself now.
“Hopefully I get the chance to showcase that in these coming matches.”
First at Sturm Graz and now at Austria Wien, Jeggo has carved out a reputation as a consistent and capable performer sitting in front of the back four, and he hopes Arnold sees qualities in him which he can harness for the national team.
He’s up against the likes of Aaron Mooy, Massimo Luongo, Jackson Irvine and Mustafa Amini, and knows it won’t be easy.
“I’m absolutely buzzing to be involved again,” Jeggo said.
“I played pretty regularly for the last couple of years in league football and have my feet firmly under me in Austria.
“You can only do what you can for your club. I’ve been close and involved under Ange.
“Obviously Mile Jedinak was a mainstay and now, not just for myself, there’s a chance for a few of us to try and push on under the new gaffer.”
Despite being so near, yet so far, Jeggo has no issues with the cards he’s been dealt, explaining: “I’ve been in football long enough now and that’s the way it is. Coaches have different opinions and there is absolutely no problem with that.
“All you can do is make sure you are playing well and improving and I think I’ve done that.
“Leading into the World Cup we finished second in the league and won the cup at Graz. I was playing regularly and doing OK and that’s all you can ever do.
“The rest comes down to the coach’s opinion.”
Jeggo overcame a pre-season ankle injury, which sidelined him for two months, and is now back in the groove for the club he joined in mid-year, racking up nine league outings to date.
“I just want to put my best foot forward in camp and hopefully show the coaching staff what I can do,” he added.
“If I can offer the team something different to what they’ve got then that would be really positive.”
