As traditional heavyweights of the region, Vietnam and Thailand were always going to be among the main contenders of the ASEAN U-23 Championship.
But given the uneven number of teams in the three groups, following Singapore and Australia's decision not to participate, both the Vietnamese and the Thais were made to sit out the opening round of games as the tournament -- officially known as the ASEAN U-23 Mandiri Cup 2025 -- kicked off this week.
With only three teams in Groups B and C, and with seeding keeping them away from fellow title hopefuls and hosts Indonesia in Group A for now, Vietnam and Thailand are heavy favourites to comfortably progress to the semifinals -- with only the group winners guaranteed a last-four berth.
Nonetheless, in the absence of some recognised star power on Wednesday, an opportunity arose -- and was seized with both hands -- by some of Southeast Asian's lesser lights.
The Group C opener already looms as the match of the tournament.
Myanmar twice led by two goals and somehow failed to win as Timor-Leste just refused to give in, dramatically striking in the 92nd minute to force a thrilling 4-4 draw in Bekasi.
While the reckless abandon in intent showed by both sides contributed to the free-scoring encounter, the quality of some of the strikes deserves applause.
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None more so than the one from the wonderfully-named Vabio Canavaro, who scored arguably the goal of the opening match day with a sumptuous 25-yard drive on the half volley to keep Timor-Leste well and truly alive in the contest at 4-3.
Earlier on in the second half, Myanmar's Min Maw Oo had weighed in with a long-range strike of his own -- although it just slightly paled in comparison given opposition goalkeeper Egidio Lurio did get both hands to the attempt but failed to keep it out.
That is not to say that Thursday's encounter suggests that both sides might give Thailand a run for their money in Group C.
The same goes for Cambodia and Laos, who played out a 1-1 draw earlier in the day ahead of their upcoming meetings with Vietnam.
Truth be told, sharing a point each really does nothing for their semifinal prospects.
Still, the undeniable talent that was on display reinforces the notion that there is quality even among the region's underdogs.
The road to upsetting the established order is a long one but it is important to at least start the journey.
Previously continental powerhouses in a bygone era, with back-to-back Asian Games gold medals in 1966 and 1970, Myanmar were once thereabouts in the mid-2010s.
They reached the semifinals of the 2016 ASEAN Championship at the expense of more-usual suspects Malaysia and Singapore. Starting from the year before, they were runners-up, fourth and then bronze medallists at the biennial Southeast Asian Games -- also an under-23 tournament.
Such heights remain a lofty dream for Timor-Leste but they are no longer being handed thrashings every time they take to the field.
Granted, at last year's ASEAN Championship, they opened with a 10-0 hiding at the hands of Thailand but followed up by giving Malaysia a real scare in a narrow 3-2 defeat in which they led at halftime, before arguably being the better team for much of the game against Singapore before a late charge saw their opponents come out 3-0 victors.
Timor-Leste are improving. And they only need to look at the example of Philippines to gain further encouragement that they are on the right track.
There was also a time Philippines were the whipping boys of ASEAN football. At the 2002 ASEAN Championship, they conceded a whooping 24 goals from just four games -- with their biggest defeat a 13-1 annihilation by Indonesia.
Since 2010, Philippines have reached the semifinals of the ASEAN Championship in five out of eight editions, as recently as last year when they returned to the final four following a four-year absence.
On Tuesday, they showed that was no fluke as they stunned Malaysia with a 2-0 upset in the opening game of the ASEAN U-23 Championship.
As the tournament progresses, it is likely that Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand will slowly but surely flex their muscles and that one of those three will go all the way.
The Indonesians already produced a statement of intent with their 8-0 rout of Brunei Darussalam, who actually sit above both Laos and Timor-Leste in the current FIFA world rankings.
Yet, even if the group stage is all they are restricted to, it does not mean that Southeast Asia's underdogs cannot, or will not, shine.
In fact, they already have.