JAMES Meredith hopes another City cup special will give the Australian national selectors a nudge.

The left back still harbours ambitions of cracking the Socceroos' scene – and the added spotlight of an appearance in the FA Cup last eight could further his chances.

Meredith said: "I hope so. I hope the selectors know that I'm playing well and helping us progress to the next round.

"Who knows, if I can play in an FA Cup semi-final and play well then maybe they may take note.

"I'd love nothing more than to play for my country. I've felt that way since I was a boy and it hasn't changed."

City's heroics against Chelsea surprisingly went under the radar Down Under but Meredith has noticed more interest as they progress further in the competition.

"I've had a couple of calls from Australian reporters, which is always good, and I think people are getting excited now it's the quarter-finals. I know they are managing to watch it.

"I think they will be aware of the quarter-finals. Most people around the world will be watching the FA Cup at this stage.

"It's an interesting one because I'm not sure how much coverage of League One they'd actually get.

"They must get some because Swindon Town's Massimo Luongo obviously plays for Australia and he had an excellent tournament in the Asian Cup.

"He scored in the final, which was fantastic, and I believe he was named player of the tournament.

"It's great to see a League One player doing so well at international level and it's certainly something that I'm confident I'd have the ability to do.

"Unfortunately it wasn't so good to see him score two against us last week. He was very sharp."