With five goals in two huge wins that have propelled Republic of Ireland into the World Cup play-offs, it has been a dream international window for Troy Parrott.
The 23-year-old striker followed up his two-goal salvo against the Portuguese on Thursday with a hat-trick in a comeback 3-2 win against Hungary in Budapest on Sunday which have kept hopes of a first Irish appearance at a World Cup since 2002 alive until next year.
His 96th-minute winner and third of the game sealed second place in Group F and had Dublin Airport jokingly claim on social media that they would be renamed the 'Troy Parrott Airport'.
That name would also be quite apt considering how often he departs from it, having forged a career a fair distance from home with AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands.
Parrott started his youth career in the north inner city of Dublin with local side Belvedere, aged eight.
He progressed through the ranks at the club and by 2017, Parrott was in demand with Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea all interested in acquiring the then 15-year-old's services.
In the end, he chose Spurs and left his home town for the bright lights of north London for an undisclosed fee.
A first professional contract would arrive two years later and he began, at 17, to train with the first team squad and the likes of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min under Mauricio Pochettino.
Parrott made his professional debut in a League Cup defeat by Colchester United in September 2019 with a Premier League debut arriving two months later under Jose Mourinho in a 5-0 victory over Burnley.
Sandwiched in between was a first Irish cap in a 3-1 friendly win over New Zealand, with Parrott providing an assist for Sean Maguire.
He would make just two more senior appearances for Spurs as while he impressed at youth level, particularly in the Uefa Youth League, he understandably was unable to dislodge Harry Kane and needed the benefit of playing men's football.
As Mourinho said after Parrott missed a penalty against Norwich City in a shootout defeat in the League Cup: "Don't think that Parrott is the second Harry Kane because he's just a young kid that needs to work."
And work is what Parrott proved he was willing to do, undertaking loan spells at Millwall, Ipswich, MK Dons and Preston.
None of those proved fruitful so Parrott decided to go abroad as he looked for regular game time and the chance to prove he can score regularly.
He joined Dutch side Excelsior Rotterdam for the 2023-24 season and had a breakthrough campaign, scoring 17 goals in 32 games.
That productive loan spell didn't change anything for him back at Spurs, so he opted for a permanent switch to the Netherlands and AZ Alkmaar paid £6.7m (8m euros) to sign him on a five-year-deal.
Parrott harboured no ill-feelings towards Spurs and instead reflected fondly earlier this year on his crucial development time spent at the club.
"It just didn't happen [with Spurs]. I'm OK with that," he said.
"I look back with a smile. It's a place where I grew up. I moved away from home quite young, so when I went there, I was in a phase of going from a kid to a teenager and then past that."
Parrott told the AZ website at the time of signing in the summer of 2024 that "I think AZ is the perfect club for me to take the next steps in my development" and that has certainly proven to be the case.
The Dubliner has found a home in the Netherlands and more specifically in Alkmaar.
He netted 20 goals in 47 games last season, including four in a 9-1 win over Heerenveen as AZ finished fifth in the Eredivisie.
Parrott then started the 2025-26 campaign in red-hot form with 10 goals in his first seven appearances before a knee ligament injury stalled his momentum for club and country as he missed the September window.
He returned and hit the ground running again, scoring three more league goals to help AZ sit third in the table.
Bigger clubs may be circling now given his prolific rate of scoring, but Parrott seems settled in the Netherlands and will more than likely consider another move in Europe rather than returning to England if he decides to move on.
On the international stage, 2025, or more specifically November of this year, has really proven to be his time to shine after a frustrating few years for his country.
Since his debut in 2019, Parrott had managed five goals for Republic of Ireland. He has been guilty of playing well but squandering some huge chances.
Since November he has five more goals in just two games.
With his confidence sky high, Irish fans will hope he can stay fit and firing between now and March as he looks to step up again and help the Republic of Ireland to a first World Cup in 24 years.
If he does, Dublin Airport may seriously consider a rebrand for the boy from the north side of the city who is a frequent flyer out of the airspace.