02/12/09: Draw Preview
06/12/09: Australia's Draw & Schedule
02/05/10: Australia's Horror Shirt
02/05/10: Australia at the Virtual Fifa World Cup
11/05/10: Preliminary Squad Announced
26/05/10: Aus win ugly vs NZ as FFA fleece public; McDonald, Carle cut
02/06/10: Another win, this time over Denmark
06/06/10: 3-1 loss to USA, final squad announced
11/06/10: Preview, Predictions and Australia's chances
14/06/10: Unmitigated disaster as Germany hand 4-0 pounding
17/06/10: The Issues (inc Cahill's red card, calls to sack Verbeek,
tactics for Ghana)
20/06/10: Redemption, as draw against Ghana keeps Cup alive
24/06/10: If only... Australia out despite 2-1 win over Serbia
After a lacklustre qualification campaign, finally some excitement begins to build for the World Cup as the draw is made early Saturday morning, Australian Eastern time.
Africa: Algeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, South Africa
Asia: Australia, Japan, Korea DPR, Korea Rep
Europe: Denmark, England, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland
North & Central America: Honduras, Mexico, USA
South America: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay
Oceania: New Zealand
Much will depend on the groupings as to Australia's draw. In recent additions, FIFA has based the four main pots on geography. Typically there's the seeds (Brazil & Argentina, the host and the rest Europeans), then another pot of remaining European nations. Last time a third Pot 3ontained remaining South American nations (Ecuador & Paraguay), the 5 Africans and Oceania (Australia). The final Pot 3ontained the four Asians and the four from CONCACAF.
As a general rule, FIFA try to prevent a group that totals more than 2 teams from a combination of European and seeded teams. You won't see Brazil, Italy and Denmark, for instance.
One key difference in 2006 was that Mexico was seeded, meaning the final Pot 3ontained only 7 teams, and there was an overflow of European nations by one. That team, Serbia & Montenegro, was place in a special pot that would be later drawn to be in the group of Brazil, Argentina or Mexico. That avoids the potential situation of 3 European teams in one group. They were eventually placed with Argentina, Netherlands & Ivory Coast.
The question of whether Australia can play New Zealand depends on the Pot 1llocation. In 2006 Australia was in with the Africans and remaining South Americans - fitting considering the playoff situation. The year 2002 was more problematic in that Korea and Japan were both seeded nations and there were 15 Europeans (Ireland won in a playoff against Iran). Pot 3 had two Asian teams and the remaining three from South America. Pot 4 had Africa and CONCACAF. Still, as the draw unfolded, FIFA ensured that any team from Pot 3 would not enter a group already containing a team from their region. Australia would have been entered in Pot 3 in Uruguay's place.
If FIFA is consistent, NZ will be grouped with the Asian teams, as that was their playoff scenario. A leaked report confirms exactly this, as Asia, Oceania and 3 CONCACAF nations combined nicely as 8 nations for one pot. After the seeds, 5 Africans and 3 South Americans remain. That's another pot. The final is the remaining Europeans.
Presuming recent history, logic and the leaked report is correct, these will be the pots:
Pot 1: South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, England, France, Germany, Italy, Spain
Pot 2: Denmark, Greece, Netherlands, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland
Pot 3: Algeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay
Pot 4: Australia, Japan, Korea DPR, Korea Rep, Honduras, Mexico, USA,
The seeds are determined by a combination of FIFA rankings and recent World Cup performances. The above represents the current suggestion circulating the internet. England might be the surprise in place of Netherlands. Argentina can probably be thankful that there are 5 South Americans so as to make a nice mathematical fit for the pots. For the sake of this exercise, it's a moot point whether England or Netherlands are seeded. Whichever one is seeded, the other is not. The chance to draw both teams still remains.
FIFA have confirmed the seeds and composition of the pots. One pot is the seeds, the other three are by geography.
Pot 1: South Africa, Brazil, Spain, Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Argentina, England
Pot 2: Australia, Japan, Korea DPR, Korea Republic, Honduras, Mexico, USA, New Zealand
Pot 3: Algeria, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay
Pot 4: Denmark, France, Greece, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland
The shock is that France is not a seed. How FIFA can ignore a finalist from the previous World Cup is astounding. Ultimately they decided to solely use their heavily flawed world rankings system, using October's, not the more recent November's that included the remaining qualifying matches. For November, France were seventh, ahead of both Argentina and England. In October, France were ranked ninth. The benefit of solely using the rankings is that Netherlands were promoted to a seed, where otherwise it might have been Portugal. Maybe FIFA chose this path to try provide some legitimacy to their appalling rankings system. No one really believes in it.
Option 1: Brazil, France, Ivory Coast, Australia.
In fact, any of the Western Africa teams would prove difficult. Australia's record is patchy. Spain would be the other seed to fear.
Option 2: Spain, Portugal, Ghana, Australia.
Option 3: Netherlands, France, Cameroon, Australia
Similar themes, except with a gun European from the seeds. Portugal and France are the teams to avoid in Pot 2. Again, any of the west Africans would be tough.
Option 1: South Africa, Slovenia, Uruguay, Australia.
If Australia draws South Africa, they will not draw another African team. You could substitute Slovenia for any of the other European teams outside Netherlands and Portugal. There probably isn't much difference to Uruguay, Paraguay and Chile, either. The key to a kind draw is drawing South Africa.
Option 2: Argentina, Slovakia, Algeria, Australia.
Argentina are a rabble under Maradona. They could be the softest seed. Australia have a good record against Arab African teams. Again, avoid Netherlands and Portugal from Pot 2.
Option 1: England, Greece, Uruguay, Australia
England for obvious reasons. Same could be said for Greece. Of the unseeded Europeans, they're certainly the most interesting given the historical links. The only issue is that it could be one hell of a boring match, given both nations drab counter-attacking style. With Uruguay, always nice to re-acquire acquaintances with an old foe.
Option 2: South Africa, Switzerland, Chile, Australia
South Africa, given our sporting links. Switzerland just seems the most interesting country of the bunch, and a team that we've never played. Chile to resume acquaintances from 1974 World Cup, where the teams drew 0-0.
Option 3: Spain or Netherlands, Portugal, Cameroon, Australia
The marquee group in terms of established World Cup nations that have yet to win a World Cup. Also a testing group. Haven't played Spain at an elite level, and they're clearly the best team in the world at the moment. Obviously Verbeek's homeland and a chance to beat them on a World setting. Cameroon is the marquee World Cup side from Africa.
FIFA should wise-up and use this far simply method, which also allows for a true "draw". Maybe they will. One pot is for the 8 seeds and the other pot is for the remaining 24 teams. FIFA's stipulation of no more than two European teams in one group remains, that two Europeans cannot be in the same group with a seed (avoids Brazil, Netherlands, Portugal, for example) remains, so too that no team can be drawn to face one from the same confederation. If a team is drawn for a group that causes a conflict with these rules, they are placed in the next available group.
Pot 1: South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, England, France, Germany, Italy, Spain
Pot 2: Denmark, Greece, Netherlands, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland,
Algeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay, Australia, Japan,
Korea DPR, Korea Rep, Honduras, Mexico, USA,
A key hurdle in this system is incorporating all the celebrity players naturally into the draw. With 2 less pots, there's 2 less players. Unless you had a few players taking turns drawing from the pot.
Technically, you also don't need the 8 players drawing slots of either 2, 3 or 4 for each of the groups as the teams are drawn, as with this one big pot of 24 teams, they could be slotted sequentially as they are drawn. That won't happen either.
Since there just happens to be 8 unseeded European nations, of greater possibility, FIFA would use three pots, with the 8 unseeded Europeans in a pot of their own, and the remaining 16 teams in a final pot. Then have the usual draw for a slot in the group. Either way, it doesn't affect the following possibilities.
Option 1: Brazil, Netherlands, Ivory Coast, Australia.
Option 2: Spain, Portugal, Ghana, Australia.
Same as previously. Maybe Mexico is the other team coming into the equation that could be avoided.
Option 1: South Africa, Slovenia, NZ, Australia
You could also suggest Honduras or the USA instead of NZ. It's certainly South Africa, NZ and one other team.
Option 1: South Africa, England, NZ, Australia
Some say the "Commonwealth" group. More accurately it's the "traditional sporting rivalry" group. Remember also that Ghana, Cameroon and Nigeria are Commonwealth countries. This would be an amazing draw, and quite possible if FIFA use 3 or less pots.
Option 1: England, USA, NZ, Australia
A fun, if somewhat perverse, "Anglo Empire" group of the key native English-speaking western nations of the world today, and the draw that I'd really like. This one can't happen as it needs a European team.
Option 2: England, Uruguay, NZ, Australia
The question: Do we really want to play NZ at the World Cup? What if Australia loses?
Option 1: England, Greece, Uruguay, Australia
Option 2: England, Greece, NZ, Australia
Option 3: England, Greece, USA, Australia
These are all the possible combinations of teams I'd like to play. England and Greece are compulsory to fulfil the need of a seed and a European team. That just leaves Uruguay, NZ and USA to fill the third slot.
Least favourite: Brazil, Italy, Germany, France. Mostly because they're a boring match-up, having played them before or just uninteresting teams.
As stated before, FIFA will no doubt will use at least 3 pots: 8 seeds, the 8 unseeded Europeans, 16 remaining teams. They really should use 3 pots for a real draw. For this exercise, we'll stick to two pots, because it also takes care of the group positioning. When FIFA typically draw a team, they then draw a slot in the group, either 2, 3 or 4. This draw will just slot the teams as they come.
The only compulsory allocation was South Africa in Group A, as is traditional for the host. The remaining seeds were then assigned numbers 2 to 8 with a number randomly drawn. First team went into Group B, second into Group C, etc. The remaining teams were numbered 9 to 32, again with a number drawn randomly and groups filled in sequence. Any clash with FIFA's stipulations saw the team moved to the next subsequent suitable group, with the group previously skipped becoming first in line for the next team drawn.
Group A: 1South Africa, 28Korea Rep, 14Slovakia, 22Chile
Group B: 4England, 25Australia, 29Honduras, 15Slovenia
Group C: 6Germany, 19Ghana, 24Uruguay, 13Serbia
Group D: 7Italy, 10Greece, 20Ivory Coast, 27Korea DPR
Group E: 5France, 31USA, 9Denmark, 21Nigeria
Group F: 2Argentina, 16Switzerland, 30Mexico, 18Cameroon
Group G: 8Spain, 23Paraguay, 12Portugal, 32
Group H: 3Brazil, 11Netherlands, 26Japan, 17Algeria
Australia can't complain about its draw. NZ has it tough.
Australia would play England first, followed by Slovenia, then Honduras. NZ would play Portugal, Paraguay then Spain.
Group C proved to be the last group filled. It was waiting for an unseeded European team as its final team. Serbia was the last team drawn. Korea DPR, Nigeria, Cameroon, NZ & Algeria all had to leap past Group C. Chile was drawn as team 3 in Group H. Because Brazil was there, it had to leap into Group A as team 4. Japan was drawn next, which went into Group H. Then came Slovenia, filling Group B.
Group A: 1South Africa, 8Uruguay, 7Slovenia, 1Australia
Group B: 7Argentina, 2Cameroon, 3Korea DPR, 8Switzerland
Group C: 8England, 4Korea Republic, 4Portugal , 4Ghana
Group D: 3Spain, 2Japan, 2France, 7Paraguay
Group E: 2Brazil, 8New Zealand, 3Ivory Coast, 1Denmark
Group F: 6Germany, 3Greece, 6Mexico, 1Algeria
Group G: 5Italy, 5Serbia, 5Honduras, 6Chile
Group H: 4Netherlands, 6Slovakia, 7USA, 5Nigeria
I love this draw even more. NZ has it even tougher.
Australia would play Slovenia first, followed by Uruguay, then South Africa. NZ would play Brazil, Denmark, then Ivory Coast.
The only time a team could not be slotted directly into a group during the draw was with the first nation picked from Pot 3 - Cameroon. Because South Africa are in Group A, Cameroon had to placed in Group B. Uruguay was the next nation draw, entering Group A.
It's a nice draw. It could have been so much worse in terms of boring teams to play. While receiving a hard draw, like copping France or Portugal as the European team, would have been overly tough, an easy draw similar to that of England's was also not ideal either. It's better than Australia is not complacent in any terms. This draw is both challenging and interesting. It's also harder than 2006 if you compare Ghana to Japan and compare Serbia to Croatia. This draw will be a good measure to determine if Australia has improved since the last World Cup.
Australia plays Germany first. As to whether that's an advantage, it depends on your perspective. Many said playing Japan, the easier team, first in 2006 was the advantage, and then able to work into the tournament. There's also the suggestion that getting the more difficult team first is preferable because there's a chance to get them by surprise - especially if you are underestimated. Typically, it's better that they are second, especially if they have won their first match. They could be slightly over-confident. If you've lost your first match, you'll be extra determined. Playing them last has the huge advantage that they could be already qualified for the next round, meaning players are rested. On the other hand, they'll be the determined team if they need a win. Ultimately it depends more on the development of the group, than then any preordained advantage.
If Australia loses, it doesn't mean either that it's all over, as so many imply with the suggestion that you must win the first game, or "get something" out of it. A narrow loss would be fine, remembering that a win and draw is often good enough to progress. It does not matter and which stage you get the win and draw, as long as you get them.
Mathematically, you can progress on two draws, if the group winner beats all the other teams, with all other games draws, it would come down to goal difference in the loss to the group winner.
Not to be forgotten is that two wins is not a guarantee. If three of the teams lose two and win one, with the other team on zero points, that leaves three teams on 6 points. One will miss.
Of the teams, Australia did well in avoiding Spain, Brazil and even the Netherlands. Ivory Coast was the African team to really avoid. Serbia is certainly preferable than France or Portugal. Again, the group is both challenging and nice.
Personally, I did not want Italy either. When Australia were drawn with Germany, it was a relief, considering the more preferred options of South Africa, England and Argentina were gone. In fact, looking at the other groups, if there was a chance to switch places with a Pot 2 team in any other group, the only groups I'd consider is Group B and Group A. Group B is an obvious choice for England and seemingly easier opponents in Algeria and Slovenia. Group A would be my choice for the chance to play South Africa, in the opening game, no less, and our old foes Uruguay.
The real bonus with this group is that if Australia can qualify, they cross with England's group. The chance to play England in a knockout game is far more appetising than in a group game. If England does not eventuate to be the team, the options of USA, Algeria and Slovenia would seem well in Australia's grasp to progress to the quarter finals.
Group A - South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay, France
Group B - Argentina, Nigeria, Korea, Greece
Group C - England, United States, Algeria, Slovenia
Group D - Germany, Australia, Serbia, Ghana
Group E - Netherlands, Denmark, Japan, Cameroon
Group F - Italy, Paraguay, New Zealand, Slovakia
Group G - Brazil, Korea DPR, Ivory Coast, Portugal
Group H - Spain, Switzerland, Honduras, Chile
Monday, June 14, 0000 (AET), Durban
Saturday, June 19, 2130 (AET), Rustenburg
Thursday, June 24, 0430 (AET), Nelspruit
As modeled during the week by Craig Moore and Tom Oar, the shirt designed for the World Cup has received universal condemnation. The key issue is that it just doesn't look like a football shirt. While there needs to be a new shirt for each major tournament and generational changes, surely the idea is to at least obey a standard design protocol. The key issue with this one is the white band. White is not synonymous with the national colours in any sense and, in a design flaw, a "metal" colour like silver (white) should never border the other metal, that being gold (yellow). That's the reason it looks so terrible. Even more disturbing, national teams have been down this road of incorporating while with the rugby union team several years ago. Those that don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it?
The simple change would be to have a green band, and change the shades of yellow between the band. That ironically is the concept of the alternative blue strip. While it's hardly a design for the ages in itself, at least it doesn't induce an almost universal loathing. In years time, the yellow version will be looked upon much like some of the garish cricket shirts of the 80s with the sentiment of "what were they thinking".
The shirt also boasts as being made entirely of recycled polyester, using up to eight plastic bottles. That boast is undermined when you consider the amount of energy that's required to not only break down plastic, to then fashion it into a shirt, most likely has a negative environmental effect.
The Socceroo Realm has been an avid player of soccer videogames for years, most particularly the International Superstar Series on the Super Nintendo and then Nintendo 64. As they died out, to be replaced by Pro Evolution Soccer series, and with the alternative EA Fifa series being so poor, the interest in these games waned. While PES is mired further and further into an ugly and frustration game, EA's took a full decade to get its act together to now finally be a viable successor to ISS while also combining simulation aspects without them being too draconian and ruining the fun of the game as the PES series does.
EA's 2006 World Cup edition was one out of the box, a pleasant surprise and only purchased (on Gamecube) because it was the World Cup edition. It proved the personal turning point for the series, especially with the action-packed gameplay on offer that was aimed at the broader gaming public, rather than the more simulation approach of the typical series. With the 2010 edition arriving this week, first duty was to play the World Cup as Australia.
Difficulty level was on Professional, the middle of the 5 levels on offer, and typically the level that is a sufficient challenge, especially with a lesser team.
Ger 2, Aus 0. Germany were too strong. Only chance came from a cheap Cahill burst through the middle late. Klose scored on 44 minutes, Gomez on 82.
Gha 1, Aus 2. A classic! Kennedy scored just before half time after running onto a nod-on from a goal-kick. The shot was saved. He charged at the rebound to slot it home. Ghana equalised on 84min with a goal to Asamoah Gyan. I slammed the couch. I was furious! From the kick off, pass to the right full back. Through ball down the wing to Bresciano, cross comes in, Cahill arrives for a header goal. Classic! Talk about a gravitational shift in emotions. From there did everything to hang on.
Srb 0, Aus 0. Close match. Both teams had a few chances. As long as Germany won their match against Ghanian, Australia only needed a draw. Germany did win 1-0. They also beat Serbia, while Serbia and Ghana drew 2-2.
Final points: Ger 9, Aus 4, Srb 2, Gha 1
Onto the winner of Group C, which proved to be Algeria! England finished second.
Alg 2, Aus 1: To be fair, they were all over me, even if the second goal, especially, was through dreadful defending. That was on 80min. On 85min I managed to pull one back, thanks to Bresciano bursting onto a through ball. Algeria's goals came from Enis Saiti on 13 minutes and Asia Djebbar on 69.
It was late Thursday night, so I quit the game, allowing it to play out. England went on to win the World Cup 1-0 over France. I didn't save the game so I could have another attempt when more alert. That came on Saturday where a much closer match finished in a 1-0 loss.
It will be interesting to compare the performance of the real Australian team. The virtual role is so symbolic. Typically, Australian teams do excel in group stages or cause a major upset, only to lose to a team in the knockout stage that you hoped they would beat.
As for the game itself, it's excellent. It's a purely international game, with all 199 nations in the game. No clubs at all. The presentation is excellent - as is standard with EA games. The only exception could be the model of Pim Verbeek. Strange look and an even stranger trench coat. Not sure I can recall him ever wearing one of those. All 32 countries have their coach represented in the game, doing "coach" things on the side lines.
Because this game is more a side release to the standard EA games, it's priced accordingly. At K-Mart and Dick Smith it's $64. Most other places have it at $74 as standard price.
Checking the simulated matches in the other groups, New Zealand did OK with a first up 1-1 draw to Slovakia before losing the other two. The hosts, South Africa, had a horror run, losing all 3 games, including 5-0 final game loss to France.
Goalkeepers: Adam Federici, Eugene Galekovic, Brad Jones, Mark Schwarzer
Defenders: Michael Beauchamp, David Carney, Scott Chipperfield, Shane Lowry, Mark Milligan, Craig Moore, Lucas Neill, Jade North, Luke Wilkshire, Rhys Williams
Midfielders: Mark Bresciano, Tim Cahill, Nicky Carle, Jason Culina, Brett Emerton, Richard Garcia, Vincenzo Grella, James Holland, Brett Holman, Mile Jedinak, Tommy Oar, Carl Valeri, Dario Vidosic
Forwards: Joshua Kennedy, Harry Kewell, Scott McDonald, Nikita Rukavytsya
Those backing up from the 2006 World Cup are Bresciano, Beauchamp, Cahill, Chipperfield, Culina, Emerton, Grella, Kennedy, Kewell, Milligan, Moore, captain Neill, Schwarzer and Wilkshire.
Notable absentees are defenders Chris Coyne, Simon Colosimo, Matthew Spiranovic, Eddy Bosnar, midfielder Jacob Burns and forwards Joel Griffiths and Mile Sterjovski
The squad will be trimmed to 23 on June 1. Galekovic will be one cut, as his inclusion is only as an injury replacement.
The only real surprises are players like North and Milligan. North was reserves for his Korean team before recently moving to Norway and Milligan played with a lowly Chinese club and plays in the J-League's division 2. Eddie Bosnar, an indispensable player with his club in the J-League first division, is totally snubbed. Same with Perth's Coyne, who performed well in his chances for Australia. It seems the fear of returning to the A-League early and risk exclusion from the World Cup squad was validated. Same can be said for fellow Perth players Sterjovski and Burns. Verbeek has stated often he doesn't respect the A-League much. More problematic is that all of these players have been inactive since February. Beauchamp's somewhat a surprise. He's been off the radar for years, with performances back then riddled with mistakes. When does Spiranovic get a shot?
The others pick themselves. The next job will be cutting 7 players. The four forwards should remain, especially when Kewell is technically a midfielder. The talk that he'll play as lone forward is outrageous. Of the defenders, exit North and Lowry and probably Milligan. Midfielders Holman or Carle, Holland, Garcia and Oar. Remembering, some of the so-called defenders are more realistically midfielders, like Wilkshire, Carney and Chipperfield, while midfielders like Emerton, Jedinak and Valeri can play defensive roles.
Goalkeepers: Adam Federici, Brad Jones, Mark Schwarzer
Defenders: Michael Beauchamp, David Carney, Scott Chipperfield, Craig Moore, Lucas Neill, Luke Wilkshire, Rhys Williams
Midfielders: Mark Bresciano, Tim Cahill, Jason Culina, Brett Emerton, Vincenzo Grella, Brett Holman, Mile Jedinak, Carl Valeri, Dario Vidosic
Forwards: Joshua Kennedy, Harry Kewell, Scott McDonald, Nikita Rukavytsya
The big debate is Brett Holman or Nick Carle. It actually symbolises a much bigger picture. A debate that is of philosophy and drawing on emotion regarding the future direction of the team. The hard-running grinder or the inconsistent maestro? The selection makes a major statement about that mindset. The fact they are mere squad players only emphasises the point. Which one do you take in the final spot? It's Verbeek's toughest decision. It should be the easiest.
Verbeek will probably take Holman, he should take Carle. I'd exclude both and take Oar. Using that philosophy in the area of defence, out goes Beauchamp, in comes Spiranovic.
It was ugly in every sense of the word. First, Australia's deplorable play that has become standard of the team only to eke out good results. Second, outrageously brutal tackles committed by Vince Grella and Tim Cahill on Leo Bertos. Grella's was a double-footed studs-up tackle on a flying horizontal launch direction, Cahill's was a flying high foot that catapulted through the air and leaving with a bleeding shin. The huge irony of the situation was Grella's accusations of being "unprofessional" against NZ's Rory Fallon when Fallon said he doubted anyone would hold back and he wouldn't be surprised if there's a few injuries. Grella's one of the dirtiest players in the team. Maybe Fallon's comments were twisted somewhat and the injury aspect would come from the Australians. As for Cahill, this is another episode that's beginning to showcase an arrogance that is bordering on obnoxious. Traditionally this is the attitude more commonly seen in the Australian cricket team. The football would be wise to leave it to those buffoons.
One must also complain about the refereeing. If Grella is sent off, Cahill is now on notice and has the responsibility not commit action that causes further damage to the team unit. It's unlikely that he'd go in for such a tackle. The fact that it's a "friendly" should place a greater importance on enforcing laws, not reducing them. In a friendly, the players' consensus is not to hurt an opponent. The fact that you do is now not only against the spirit of the game, it's against the spirit of that gentlemen's agreement.
As for the match, NZ was all over Australia in the first half, scoring one courtesy of Chris Kullen, and possibly should have scored 2 more. After Australia equalised through a fortuitous deflection that allowed the impressive Dario Vidosic to run on and finish nicely, NZ should have went ahead again when a point-blank header from Fallon went straight to Brad Jones for a reflex save. From there, Australia assumed control of the match to undeservedly win 2-1 with the last kick of the game thanks to a neat finish by Brett Holman after a chip over the top by Carl Valeri.
Again, one cannot argue with the result, and one simultaneously cannot be impressed with the performance. Doubts persist whether coach Verbeek's style will be effective in South Africa. Faith must remain given his excellent record. If the team can succeed playing this way, Verbeek will be haled a genius.
Ridiculous is all that be said about the prices for this warm-up game against New Zealand at Melbourne's MCG. 55,000 in attendance would be seen as disappointing. No matter the description of "World Cup farewell game" or any other label or hype, the reality is that it was a warm-up game and the opposition was New Zealand. At any other time of year it would at a smaller stadium and accessible prices. On this occasion, FFA chooses to do what? Instead of promoting the sport and trying to achieve a full-house for a farewell with a reasonable pricing scheme, they chose to fleece the public. Tickets ranged from $45 for ultra terrible seats, to $95 for "gold". Remembering, this is also a Monday night - again a compromise for the public. The tickets should have been half the prices on offer with a good family priced ticket. I'm one that instantly wiped any idea of attending this match once I saw the prices. After the display on offer and reducing playing personnel, it's only vindicated my decision to never attend exhibition games - my definition of them - again. Certainly not if they are priced so outrageously and at a most inconvenient timeslot.
Finally Scott McDonald and Nick Carle are put out of their misery. The drama over the will-he-or-won't-he aspect of Carle being in the World Cup squad has ended with the player not even making the reduced preliminary squad to travel to South Africa. The debate with McDonald ended just as abruptly. Defender Jade North was never a realistic chance with, as Verbeek often says, having enough better players in his position. The situation with Carle and McDonald is not so clear. While Carle has simply not impressed in his many chances with Australia, he was seen as providing an X-factor if the team ever needed to break open a game. Likewise with McDonald, almost hopelessly ineffective in Verbeek's lone-striker system, he was seen as option if Verbeek ever needed a second striker to chase a game. We've seen that Verbeek has never done that anyway, with the only time a duel-striker system was employed was the very first World Cup qualifier, against Qatar, when McDonald and Joshua Kennedy teamed. That was a game in which McDonald played his best game. From there, the conservative approach was taken to China and persisted throughout, much to the detriment of McDonald.
The bigger problem with the omission of McDonald is that it simply leaves the team short on strikers. While Verbeek will claim there's as many as six with Kennedy, Kewell, Nikita Rukavytsya, Holman, Garcia and Vidosic (and maybe even Cahill if you factor in his strike role away to Japan), others would claim there's just one out-and-out striker: Kennedy. Even accepting Verbeek's classification of 3 strikers, it seems remarkably short, especially when you consider there's 3 goal-keepers. When there's also an injury cloud over Harry Kewell - at least with the potential of re-injury - it's cutting it really fine. If it all works out, as already stated about Verbeek's tactics, he'll be seen as the genius.
Australia plays two more warm-up games before their first World Cup game against: Denmark on 1 June and USA on 6 June.
A last minute goal from substitute Brett Holman gave Australia a 2-1 win over New Zealand at the MCG, as the Socceroos put a poor first-half performance behind it to fight back from a goal down.
Australia's best available 11 struggled badly in a poor first 45 minutes against the Kiwis, trailing 1-0 and lucky to be down by just that as the All Whites played it off the park.
Australia then pinched an injury-time winner to spare its blushes, as it looked a far more lively side in the second half.
New Zealand, ranked more than 50 places below the Australians, showed it could create some problems for the unprepared at the World Cup as it outplayed the Socceroos in the first 45 minutes.
Despite Australia being without five first-choice players, including Harry Kewell, the New Zealanders caused plenty of uncertainty in an Australian defence lying far too deep.
New Zealand midfielder Simon Elliott was outstanding in pulling the strings.
Striker Chris Killen stunned the 55,000-strong crowd when he ghosted behind the defence to latch on to neat lead-up from Elliott and Shane Smeltz's flicked header to give the All Whites a deserved lead in the 16th minute.
New Zealand could easily have been two goals up by half-time, with Killen hitting the post in the 24th minute with a swinging volley.
Australia's coach Pim Verbeek was busy in the second half, injecting five substitutes, including Holman, keen to show they are worthy of places in the 27-man provisional squad leaving for South Africa for a pre-World Cup training camp on Wednesday.
It paid dividends with a far more lively performance, with young midfielder Dario Vidosic's 57th minute equaliser getting Australia back into the game.
New Zealand could have taken the lead again on 70 minutes. They were denied when goalkeeper Brad Jones made a reflex save to deny Rory Fallon.
Then Holman, who had been busy, was put behind the New Zealand defence by Carl Valeri's neat lofted pass and slotted home to seal victory.
The match did have its share of controversy, with an ugly two-footed challenge by midfielder Vince Grella on All Whites winger Leo Bertos contentiously resulting in just a yellow card.
Tim Cahill was also booked for another rash challenge on Bertos a few minutes later, with the Wellington Phoenix player being stretchered off.
Kewell, Schwarzer, Brett Emerton, Luke Wilkshire, Scott Chipperfield and Josh Kennedy were all missing from the line-up because of injury concerns, or being rested.
Verbeek has promised to give star midfielders Cahill and Grella a dressing-down over the poor challenges that marred the Socceroos win.
The pair were lucky to remain on the park after rash, ugly tackles on New Zealand winger Leo Bertos.
Grella launched a horrible two-footed lunge at Bertos midway through the first half.
Then Cahill followed up with a less vicious, and no less illegal challenge that led to Bertos being stretchered off with a leg injury.
Verbeek labelled the challenges unprofessional following a win even he called fortunate.
"They know it was not good what they did. I don't have to tell them, but I'm going to tell them it's unacceptable," Verbeek said.
"I can only give the compliments to New Zealand that they behaved themselves.
"They were very professional. My players were not.
"You cannot afford to go into any game and make tackles like that. In the World Cup, it's probably two red cards."
Verbeek also revealed that on Tuesday afternoon he would nominate the 27 players that will travel to South Africa on Wednesday, ahead of the June 1 deadline for the final 23.
New Zealand coach Ricki Herbert felt Australia was lucky to keep all 11 men on the park and admitted Bertos' condition would be assessed on Tuesday to see if he was fit enough to continue on to the World Cup.
Defensive midfielder Tim Brown also popped a shoulder and was taken to hospital for scans.
Australia showed it has three weeks of heavy lifting to get in World Cup shape as some soft underbelly was exposed by the spirited New Zealand.
It's at the point these days that you need not watch a match involving Australia to
produce an accurate match report. After Denmark had the better of the few chances in the
first half, Australia balanced possession in the second half and score via Josh Kennedy.
Kennedy's point blank shot came after a deflected cross lobbed and bounced near Kennedy,
who was quickest to turn. Game over.
The most pleasing part of the exercise was that the defence looked solid, not that they
were really stretched. Brett Holman, who came on for the second half, proved encouraging
with his pace - something that might quell the myriad of detractors.
Also pleasing were results from other recent warm-up matches. New Zealand beat Serbia 1-0
and Ghana lost 4-1 to Holland. If you take a formline through those matches, Australia has
a good chance against both opponents.
Next up is the USA on Saturday before the big games start. This is when this style of
opportunism and probability is really tested. It has the pre-condition that you are as
good or better than everyone. Australia only has that over Asia. Maybe coach Pim Verbeek
can take it to a new level. Again, he gets a result with it. This time over Denmark.
Results speak. No cause for complaint... yet.
Australia shook off another layer of pre-FIFA World Cup rust on Tuesday as a
second-half Josh Kennedy goal gave the Socceroos a 1-0 friendly win over Denmark at
Ruimsig Stadium in South Africa.
In a far more composed performance than last week's widely panned 2-1 win over New Zealand
the Socceroos capitalised on one of just a handful of clear-cut chances in a match
contested mainly in the midfield.
Kennedy swooped on a Danish defensive mix-up on 71 minutes to volley home from close
range.
It gave Australia a second successive friendly victory as it builds up toward its opening
World Cup match against Germany on June 14 (AET).
In the last chance for the Socceroos to audition for World Cup squad places ahead of the
deadline for the final squads at midnight on Tuesday (Wednesday 0800 AET) it was the
familiar who made the most impression.
Starting with nine of what is likely to be its first choice eleven when the tournament
kicks off, the Socceroos maintained possession well against its World Cup-bound rival who
offered little in the way of attacking thrust.
What there was came down the left side with Scott Chipperfield and Mark Bresciano proving
more than equal to the task.
On the opposite side of defence Luke Wilkshire was outstanding while Craig Moore turned in
a pleasing return to form in central defence after struggling against New Zealand.
Australia's coach Pim Verbeek admitted his players struggled to deal with the playing
conditions at Ruimsig Stadium.
"I think defensively we did very well and played very compact. Playing at altitude
means that you have to change the way of playing and we saw that Denmark struggled when
they tried to play long balls over the top," he said.
"We're going to train at altitude for the next 10 days but we play Germany at sea
level in our first match so it will be interesting to see if we can change the way of
playing."
Denmark have been in the country only since Saturday and struggled in the second half
after shading the first period. Coach Morten Olsen revealed that his team also struggled
to deal with the flight of the ball.
"It was a game where there was very compact midfield play and space behind the
defence. I will not search for an excuse for my team but it was difficult for both teams
to get used to the ball."
"We still have two weeks to get used to the conditions because from what I saw it was
very, very difficult to control the ball, but, of course, every team has to cope with
that."
With the deadline for countries to submit their final 23-man squad fast approaching,
Verbeek confirmed he had made his mind up but refused to reveal those who would be dropped
until he has spoken to his players.
"I'm going to tell my players first. We'll have a discussion with the medical staff
to check everything is okay and then we will finalise the decision. We will tell the
players tonight which will be in the final 23."
We've been hearing it for weeks that these warm-up games, that "results don't matter". Therefore, the 3-1 loss to the USA last night, should we simply focus on the performance?
To some extent, elements were pleasing. Most particularly the team showed something going forward, and created several good chances, and (shock, horror), played with two up front for the last 15 minutes, bringing on Nikita Rukavytsya to partner Josh Kennedy, when chasing the game at 2-1. For their efforts, Australia should have scored 2 or 3 more. They also dominated possession (58%) and had more corners (10/4), not that often translates to any guaranteed superiority these days. It's about the action you take with the possession.
At the other end of the pitch, disturbingly, it wasn't as good. The US cut Australia open with ease, exposing them at will. While Australia might have scored 3 or 4, USA could have had 8. That includes 3 goals before Australia even scored its goal to level the scores at 1-1 at that stage. The second half was even more open, with the US continuing to create clearly the better chances, more of them, and frequently with open shots on goal. In fact, Australia's goal that they did score came from its most notorious avenue: a scrappy corner after Cahill ran in late at the back-post and making a sliding-volley to squeak past the defender on the near post.
After the match, it was difficult to read coach Pim Verbeek's reaction. It seemed a combination of embarrassment (that the stoic conservatism was finally exposed), frustration (from the shabbiness of the pitch, bizarre flight patterns of the World Cup ball and injury woes to key players like Kewell and Emerton preventing them from playing) and anger (that nothing had really been achieved with these warm-ups). After 3 warm-up games, the consensus from coach, players and others alike is that there's still work to do. That seems strange given the long campaign that was supposed to see Australia as a battle-hardened unit and for these warm-up games to act as the final fine-tuning phase. All that is regardless of the injuries heading into the tournament. Replacement players were supposed to fit it with minimal fuss.
The only reassuring point is that it was a friendly, and "results don't matter", even if that mantra truly means "results don't matter unless it's a loss". We're also constantly reminded that players are in heavy training and flight behaviour of the ball is erratic. Oh, and the first game in the World Cup is at sea level. That just raises another question about playing the two warm-ups in South Africa at altitude. If we want to keep the faith, we know all teams will face the same problems with the ball. That will benefit Australia as Germany most likely will be the aggressors. On the pitch, we know the team can defend. One warm-up game doesn't unravel that fact. We saw last night that they can do something going forward. Now it's about the judicious combination of the two.
USA 3 Edson Buddle (4), Edson Buddle (31), Herculez Gomez (90)
AUS 1 Tim Cahill (19)
Rhys Williams was the surprise final omission for the final 23-man World Cup squad. A surprise in that the talk was of other players, including Vidosic, Garcia or possibly. It proved that Williams had been carrying a groin injury and had never fully recovered. The four other players cut - Shane Lowry, Tom Oar, James Holland and goalkeeper Eugene Galekovic - were expected omissions, only being part of the travelling squad as injury cover or future development.
This omission of Williams is not bad. It most likely would have been Vidosic or Garcia otherwise. Now it means an extra attacker in the team. With only one out-and-out striker in the team (Kennedy), it is seriously light on. We saw that with Rukavytsya brought on late against the USA to play a two-striker system, Verbeek is limited to the players he can call from the bench.
This situation emphasises the point the Socceroo Realm made during the World Cup qualifiers, especially the final game against Japan that finally saw Australia behind, that we needed to see the team and the coach's response to a situation of chasing a game. Unfortunately, Tim Cahill popped up as ever, scoring two goals before Australia ever needed to consider a tactical change. Here, in this final warm-up game, is the first situation encountered of the need to chase the game. That isn't good heading into the World Cup where almost certainly Australia will be chasing the game once or twice. Only if they waltz through and win the whole damn thing that this situation won't be seen. Scott McDonald, the classic poacher in a dual-striker system and ejected from the squad because the team doesn't play two strikers, must be perplexed and confused as anyone.
Goalkeepers: Adam Federici, Brad Jones, Mark Schwarzer
Defenders: Michael Beauchamp, David Carney, Scott Chipperfield, Mark Milligan, Craig Moore, Lucas Neill, Luke Wilkshire
Midfielders: Mark Bresciano, Tim Cahill, Jason Culina, Brett Emerton, Richard Garcia, Vincenzo Grella, Brett Holman, Mile Jedinak, Carl Valeri, Dario Vidosic
Forwards: Joshua Kennedy, Harry Kewell, Nikita Rukavytsya
United States handed Australia a FIFA World Cup reality check, recording a 3-1 victory in an entertaining warm-up match at Ruimsig Athletic Stadium in Roodepoort.
Australia was outmuscled and outplayed by the world No.14 side for much of the first half and bounced back with a solid 30-35 minutes of dominance in the second for no result.
American striker Edson Buddle scored twice in the first half, before second-half substitute Herculez Gomez put the result beyond doubt with a third in injury-time.
Midfielder Tim Cahill was Australia's scorer.
USA went ahead after just four minutes when Buddle was gifted a run at goal by Vincenzo Grella's poor possession in the defensive third and made no mistake with his powerful finish.
The Americans could have easily been 2-0 up after 15 minutes after springing the Socceroos' offside trap. Unfortunately, after rounding keeper Mark Schwarzer, striker Robbie Findley shot wide with the goal wide open.
Four minutes later Australia equalised, with Cahill netting his 20th goal in 40 appearances for the national team, sliding in at the far post to turn in a Luke Wilkshire corner.
USA then came close after a delightful piece of inter-passing to unlock Australia after 27 minutes, only for Schwarzer to make a brilliant diving save to deny his Fulham team-mate Clint Dempsey.
The Americans didn't have to wait long to take the lead - Buddle adding a second in the 31st minute, heading home a pinpoint Steven Cherundolo cross from the right.
Australia had further chances to Josh Kennedy and Jason Culina, before Dempsey and Socceroos centre-back Craig Moore were involved in a physical altercation which earned both a yellow card.
USA had a possible third goal disallowed from Michael Bradley's header in the 53rd minute. Australian then spent most of the second half well on top.
Three good saves from reserve goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann denied the Aussies an equaliser and possibly a winner.
Australia were hit by a late sucker punch when Gomez netted at the death when he guided low cross from Landon Donovan into the net from close range.
As is becoming the trend, the draw is the greatest indicator of a team's chance to succeed. Four years ago Italy had probably the softest draw ever. Australia then Ukraine. In the semi-finals, it was a Germany playing more on emotion and motivation than a renowned quality team. In the final came the inconsistent France. They looked great when beating Brazil 2-0 on the way. At other times, they were dreadful. Italy got something in between.
In 2006, both finalists had beneficial draws. Germany came through via Paraguay, USA and Korea, while Brazil came through Belgium, England and Turkey. Turkey also had a soft draw to finish third. As did Croatia in 2002.
This year, 2010, the softest draw is easily as winners of the first four groups. That's most likely France, Argentina, England and Germany. Of France and Argentina, neither are among the major favourites, having qualified in relative poor style and with mixed recent forms, so England and Germany have even greater cause to win their groups. Of the final four groups, there's Netherlands, Italy, Brazil and Spain. Group G also sees two dangerous potential second-placed teams with Portugal and Ivory Coast.
Looking at the tougher section, Spain, one of the clear favourites, must go through Team 2 in Group G, either Brazil, Portugal or Ivory Coast. Then it's Italy, then Germany in the semi-finals. The group G winner initially an easier task, playing Group H Team 2, either Switzerland, Honduras or Chile. Win that and it becomes tough, with the Netherlands in the quarters before England in the semi-finals.
Contrast those tough paths with England. Group 2 team 2 of either Australia, Ghana or Serbia. Then they play Group A winner, probably France, then Netherlands or Group 2 team 2 in the semi-final. The big "if" is that with France's poor form, it's highly probable England would face either South Africa, Mexico or Uruguay in the quarters.
The most probable Group D winner, Germany, goes through either USA, Algeria or Slovenia from Group C, then it's either the aforementioned dubious France or Argentina or any of the Group A or B teams in that sense. Germany would then Italy or Spain in the semi-finals.
One semi-final looks to be Germany or Argentina vs Spain or Italy. I'll call it Germany vs Spain. The other semi looks to be England vs Netherlands or Brazil/Portugal/Ivory Coast. I'll call it England vs Netherlands.
If Spain, the impressive European champions, can get through their draw, they shouldn't have any problems with Germany - the team they defeated to win Euro 2008. England would seem to have the guns - and the coach - to cope with perennial World Cup chokers, the Netherlands.
The final sees Spain vs England. Spain has the credentials, England might have the destiny. Will take Spain over England, with Germany for third. I'm also keen to see new teams win these tournaments. In that sense, finally the Dutch might strike gold.
For an outsider, I'll look to the African teams. Ivory Coast will need to show the highest credentials that they've been afforded as they are brutalised by the draw. Cameroon have it just as bad. Algeria and South Africa seem outclassed. Nigeria have the best draw, especially if they finish second. That sees them against the winner of group A, then England. Ghana, ideally, would need to win their group. Otherwise, a first-up eighth-final against England, before any of teams from the weak Group A.While Ghana seems the more exciting proposition, Nigeria has the edge in experience and path.
What of New Zealand? They have a great television schedule, with two matches at 9.30pm and one at midnight. It's a disgrace that two of Australia's games are on so late at 4.30am (or so early, depending on your sleep pattern), especially the first one being a Sunday, no reason it could not be an afternoon game for both Africa and Europe, which allows an early evening game for Australia. Ironically, NZ would prefer Australia's schedule, given that a 4.30am game here is 6.30 there. It does highlight the indecency FIFA really has for this part of the world. For NZ's effort in qualifying, they do have a nice group with Italy, Paraguay and Slovakia. No reason that they could not qualify from the group. They, with the Dutch, will also be a firm interest.
First: Spain
Second: England
Third: Germany
Outsider: Nigeria
Despite much of the hype about the sound defence, even this site has tried to look positive by simple observation of score-sheets, the reality is that the defensive soundness is a myth. In the Dutch era, Australian teams have leaked goals. Not just goals, they've leaked chances. Without Schwarzer in goal, perception would be so different. Or, at least, fans would see the connection between their admiration of Schwarzer's standing in the team and the reality that so many saves means trouble ahead against top quality opposition
This site has been writing since the Hiddink era that one day Australia will be exposed. The simple reasoning is the positioning of non-specific defenders in defensive positions, most notably wide. The Dutch system works for Dutch players, because they are capable at world level. For Australia, players like Chipperfield and Wilkshire are not defenders. You can play them as wing-backs in a 5-man defence line. You can't play them in a defensive four. You need specialists in these positions that can go forward, not midfielders to play defensively.
Evidence of this weakness already exists. The last World Cup against Brazil, Chipperfield was at fault for both goals. Against Italy, Bresciano was easily beaten for the play that ultimately produced the winning penalty. The qualifying games against Uruguay, the Uruguayans could have scored anything. In the 2010 qualifiers, Japan were only let down with poor finishing. In a friendly, Korea carved Australia open. Recently, New Zealand scored and created many chances. Just a week ago, the USA, cut the team open at will, as has been personally feared.
The imposing defensive record that Australia has compiled is a result of the elongated World Cup qualifying campaign against Asian opposition that's either been too weak or too timid. Uzbekistan and China gave Australia too much respect. Iraq, Bahrain and Japan were unlucky. Qatar proved the whipping boys. Australia had them in both group phases. The pivotal moment came away to China when China won a last second penalty. It was struck straight to Schwarzer. Lose that game, and Iraq scores one of their many chances in their 1-0 loss in Australia, Australia is then required to win their last group game of that phase - at home to China. They could afford to rest many players, and lost.
Australia enters this World Cup on the false belief of a great defence, all built because of one person: Mark Schwarzer. The difference now is that the opposition is up a level or two, maybe more, and age and weariness has seen the core group of players drop a level or two, maybe more. Not so much in individual skill, more so in an exponential impact on team form when players out of their best position are not performing to their previous ability and many players of better credentials are left at home because they cannot play the system. New Zealand provided hints of the mayhem that could be created; the USA put it on the scoreboard. Australia's best chance, as with 2006, is to score goals. Sadly, with the ultra-conservative style of probability and opportunism under coach Pim Verbeek, and with the retirement of Mark Viduka, that's an area also lacking. As much as is the feature of the team not conceding goals, they are also not scoring them. Entering a World Cup with a myth about their strengths and a reality about their weakness, it doesn't look good.
The head is saying a 3-0 loss to Germany, a 2-2 with Ghana, and a loss to Serbia. If the team is down on confidence and concedes an early goal, that final game could be a rout.
The only reprieve against this dire outcome is some minor faith in Verbeek - that he has some master plan, and the results and luck continue. Forget the projections that 4 point or 5 points should be enough to qualify for the knockout stage, the reality is that 6 points can see you miss out and, equally, 2 points can see you progress. If Australia, Ghana and Serbia all draw against each other, and all lose to Germany, that's 9 points Germany, 2 points the rest. It then becomes a matter of a goal difference from that solitary loss. A 1-0 loss to Germany and two draws? In Verbeek's style of probability and opportunism, the heart is saying that's the most probable and opportunistic outcome.
The writing was on the wall for the 4-0 hiding once the starting team was announced and included no recognised strikers and a totally untried configuration. The much hyped question of "Kennedy or Kewel" became the most remarkable of all answers: Richard Garcia. He took Cahill's spot as Cahill moved as "striker". Nominally it was, in reality it was some bizarre 4-4-2-0 concoction - something that we first saw in the World Cup qualifier away to Japan. Other changes saw Bresciano dumped for Valeri with Valeri playing Culina's traditional role, Emerton returning for his usual slot on the right, and Culina moving out wide to the left - a wide position in which Culina has never seemed comfortable, and later remedied with a substitution. If that wasn't enough, there was always the fear that this team would be torn apart after its uninspiring style for the past two years and aging players.
Remarkably, Australia nearly took the lead from its usual avenue of opportunism when a corner was nearly knocked home by Garcia after a goal-mouth scramble. From there, it was all Germany. The pace in which the USA used to exploit Australia's slow and aging defence and midfield in the final warm-up game was taken to a new level by Germany. They knew the weaknesses, and exploited them. That included goal-keeper Mark Schwarzer's one known foible: timing his run to crosses. It cost a goal the last World Cup to Japan, it cost the second goal here. Compounding this was the cheap possession given away, and the lack of any drive going forward. Whereas a quick pass to the feet of tightly marked players is looked to be flicked on by teams like Germany in obvious open sapce, Australia sees fit to flick it back, then control it, then pass it sideways or even backwards. This absolute concession of the game only invites trouble and for the Germans to raid upon raid in a breathtaking display. It's not the mentality to take into a game, and certainly not one you'd expect from Australia. The whole underdog tag that the team promoted was so self-defeating that in prophecy the more accurate description would be lapdogs.
If poor defending and lack of nuance in attack wasn't already bad enough, back was the indiscipline and arrogance that is beginning to blight this team. Rough tackles, including a straight red card for Tim Cahill for a tackle from behind, and general shoves, late tackles and unruly behaviour. Lucas Neill was lucky to not have an elbow spotted in the German penalty box. Later in the game, he elbowed another in the back when contesting the ball. Naturally, the howls of protests against the resultant yellow highlighted this egotistical mindset. Earlier in the game, Craig Moore received a yellow for telling the referee to F-off. Amongst that was the team's general shameless calls for offside on almost every German raid. That manifested in post-match comments with Neill saying the red-card on Cahill was "yellow at best" despite Neill admitting not actually seeing the tackle, and calling the first goal "very sloppy" when the truth is the team was destroyed and could already have been one down already. It's this lack of recognition of team liability that crucifies personal sacrifice and obscures reality and creates the problems. The team needs to be booted up the backside. Since coach Pim Verbeek seems too soft to do so, hopefully this reality check from Germany will do the job.
Positives? First, the omission of Kennedy was, conceptually, a good move. It meant the team was less inclined to play the long-balls that had become all to familiar in warm-up games. That forced some sort of attacking moves on the ground. Brett Emerton, in his first game back in months, proved a star. Pity that the option in replacing Kennedy was not for a couple of strikers. There might have been some reward for Emerton's efforts. Australia were denied a clear penalty early in the second half after a handball in the box from Garcia's header. Score there and it's 2-1, Cahill's still on the pitch, who knows the result. The final positive is that the loss, in effect, matters little. Most penciled in a loss to Germany. Whether it's 2-0 or 4-0, the equation remains the same. At least now the team has been brought back to earth.
Despite Ghana's win to Serbia being less ideal than a draw in that game, Australia is still not out of it if they lose the next game to Ghana, just as long as Ghana and Serbia beat Germany. Then it comes down to a combination of beating Serbia and Ghana beating Germany by enough goals to offset the 4-0 deficit here. Of course, that's unlikely. While a draw is the minimum required, albeit one that would still require a similar combination of big wins in the final games involving Australia against Serbia and Germany against Ghana to offset the goal difference, a win is demanded. Not only does that offset Ghana's first game victory, it also benefits morale and self-belief. From there, assuming Germany beat both Serbia and Ghana, Australia needs just a draw against Serbia to progress - an identical situation to 2006 when Croatia was the final game. Judging by the performance level of the Ghana/Serbia game, Australia is well in the mix. They just need the right mindset and attitude. The great, physical problem of tired, old and slow players unfortunately cannot be resolved now other than for a patchwork solution.
Germany 4 Lukas Podolski (8') Miroslav Klose (26') Thomas Müller (67') Cacau (70')
Australia 0
Durban Stadium, Durban, South Africa
Attendance: 62,618
Germany Australia 17 Shots 11 2 Saves 5 10 Fouls 18 4 Corner Kicks 7 7 Offsides 2 56% Possession 44% 2 Yellow Cards 3 0 Red Cards 1
Any worries Germany might have had about the loss of influential captain Michael Ballack were quickly put to rest in their 4-0 opening win against outgunned Australia in Durban.
Richard Garcia provided an early scare for the three-time world champions in the nervy awkwardness of the opening exchanges. It proved a false dawn as Germany were a goal to the good inside eight minutes of the teams' Group D curtain-raiser. Miroslav Klose fired a warning shot after four minutes which was well dealt with by Mark Schwarzer, and then Australia’s Fulham-based net-minder could do nothing about what came just four minutes later. A diagonal ball from Mesut Oezil sent Thomas Mueller breaking down the right side of the penalty area and the Bayern Munich starlet crossed low for Lukas Podolsk to drill home with his left foot past Schwarzer, who did well just to get a hand to it.
The Australians were stunned by the early set-back and the heavy underdogs, labelled as such by captain Lucas Neill in the build-up, had no luck grinding their way back into the contest. After 20 minutes, Garcia was again vaguely threatening, this time his tame strike from the edge of the box failed to do justice to some clever approach work. The Germans were in the ascendancy and threatening from both flanks. In the 24th minute, Klose – usually so reliable on the world stage – fluffed an absolute sitter, blazing over a brilliant cross from out left by scorer Podolski, who was looking a new man after a disappointing season with Cologne.
It did not take long for Klose to make amends. With 26 minutes played, he rose high to head home an inch-perfect cross from captain Philipp Lahm, whose recent claim that this Germany side is the best he has played in suddenly began to gain weight. Oezil had another golden chance on the half-hour mark. His delicate chip over Schwarzer was booted clear by Neill, who was leading a rearguard in serious danger of total collapse by the time the half-time whistle, mercifully for Australia, brought an end to the opening stanza.
The second half began with Neill unceremoniously planting a knee into the back of danger man Klose. That bit of impetuousness combined with a red card for Tim Cahill in the 56th minute for a reckless challenge on Bastian Schweinsteiger was the full measure of Aussie resistance. With a man advantage, the German juggernaut went into overdrive. Oezil and Podolski both went close to scoring from close range before the outstanding Mueller made it 3-0 with a sharp strike in off the post after a wily give-and-go with Podolski had cut a swathe through Australia's defence in the 66th minute. Two minutes later Cacau added a fourth and final goal with his first touch of the ball after coming on as a substitute for Klose, slotting home the simplest of finishes from six yards out.
The Germans' victory moved them level on three points with Ghana, winners against Serbia earlier in the day. Joachim Low's men next face the Serbs on 18 June in Nelson Mandela Bay while Australia will look to rebound against a powerful Black Stars side one day later in Rustenburg.
Joachim Low, Germany coach We did our homework on Australia and we knew where they have problems. It was fun watching the team in lots of situations. The win was important for us as it will give us confidence. We now have the opportunity to reach the Round of 16 early if we win our second match. That's what we're aiming for.
Philipp Lahm, Germany captain It was important for us to win our opening game. We knew we had a chance before the tournament and we showed that tonight. But there's still a long way to go. Don't forget we had a bit of luck in the first few minutes. You saw there that we're still a young team. This side has lots and lots of quality in it and we created a string of chances. We should have gone further ahead earlier than we did."
Miroslav Klose, Germany forward I think everything came together very well. It's incredibly important for that to happen in your first game. We've earned some respect but we haven't won anything yet. As you saw, we're a very young team and we're having fun. I know what I'm capable of. I felt great tonight and I was able to do my bit.
Thomas Muller, Germany right-winger We were well organised and didn't let the Australians put us off. You have to be happy when you win 4-0.
Bastian Schweinsteiger, Germany midfielder The win is good for the confidence because you're a bit nervous beforehand and you don't know where you stand. We played some good football so let's hope it continues. There's only one target for us now and that's reaching the Round of 16 as quickly as possible.
Pim Verbeek, Australia coach It was tough for us after the sending-off. It was tough enough before that. Germany were better and we have to win the next two games now. We need to learn from this. We didn't play as a team and after the first goal we had to do a bit more going forward. We need to score in the next two matches, that's for sure. We're better than we showed tonight.
Lucas Neill, Australia captain The Germans are a very good team but we made it easy for them by conceding early. It was very difficult for us when we were 2-0 down with only ten men. There are still two games to go with six points at stake and that's what we have to focus on now.
A deliberate foul, no attempt to win the ball, tackle from behind, red card. The rules are explicit. The fact that the referees are so inept in their consistency to enforce the rule is no defence. The rule is there, players must be aware that they could strike-out and get a referee that might enforce the rule, therefore don't commit the foul.
Cahill is lucky in that previous World Cups a red card was a straight two-game suspension. FIFA are wise in reducing that to one game, with extra suspensions at their discretion for the roughest of challenges and assaults.
As many have commentated, these are a public menace, have no tradition and drown out legitimate noise of crowd chants, drumming, crowd reaction and general atmosphere. They are just the latest fad in a country that has yet to evolve through the process that many countries already have of banning these things. If there were some sort of dynamism to their use - like after a chance on goal, a corner kick - then fine. Instead there is nothing other than an incessant drone. There's a reason that so many countries - including Australia - have banned them. There's also the not too subtle concern that they could be used as weapons.
Of the greatest concern, I am used to hearing these things now. Not that I'd appreciate hearing them live and especially not in the street. Some teams have reported that they can't sleep because of idiots blowing them in the streets.
In contrast to Australia's shambolic approach to their match, it was great to see NZ and DPR Korea remain true to themselves. The highlight of the tournament was NZ scoring the equaliser in the 93rd minute. It's just a pity it wasn't the 83rd minute, as immediately felt was a sense of deja-vu of Australia vs Japan in 2006. Similarly with DPRK, they never panicked against their much-vaunted opposition, to score a goal late that could be telling in the final summary.
In a portent of Australia's and NZ's prospects, I bet with a friend that NZ would out-perform Australia and Shane Smeltz would score more goals than the entire Australian team. So far, half the bet is met.
Is it the vuvuzelas, is it the Jabulani ball, is it the winter conditions, is it the altitude? Unknown yet, only to say the dreariness of this World Cup and, especially, the lack of goals is a great concern. In contrast to popular belief, the Jabulani ball would never create problems for goal-keepers, it would create problems for players. Passes are over-hit, headers mistimed. This is part of the problem. Mostly it's just that it's the World Cup, it's the first game, and teams are desperate not to lose.
Craig Foster, on SBS, made headlines after the game against Germany calling for coach Pim Verbeek to be sacked. Not the first time Foster has made such irrational and often hysterical responses. Before the game, he was tipping Australia to win. It's doubtful Foster was being genuinely honest in either circumstance. His body language gave it away on the prediction.
Foster's comments on Verbeek:
I remember the game three weeks ago (against New Zealand), which was a debacle - don't forget he's been in the job two years. Remember after the game against New Zealand he said organisation was all over the place, and we've got three weeks to fix it. Well, he didn't fix it. The players have to look at the bench and they have to believe in him, and I don't think they believe in him, certainly we don't. It's not Pim Verbeek's team, it's ours, it's Australia's. He's getting two million bucks a year to send us out in a World Cup and get crucified with no attempt to play anything.
To be perfectly honest with you I would have walked down after the game and sacked him, because it's not good enough.
When someone prefaces "to be honest" before making a declarative statement, they are not really being honest. They say that to help convince themselves or give strength to their words for which they have personal doubt themselves. In Foster's case, he said "to be perfectly honest". That's even worse.
There's no point in sacking Verbeek now. At least wait until after the Ghanaian game.
"Australia must win the next two games" is the common response after the lost to Germany. Rubbish. Australia must finish in the top two of the group. That can be done with as little as two points and failed to be done with as many as six points. As it stands, Australia's most likely progression is by winning four points - the same situation as 2006. In 2010, that means beating Ghana, drawing against Serbia and hoping Germany beats both. While they cannot progress with two points now, they can certainly be eliminated with 6 points. This scenario is quite common historically in this type of 4-team group set-up. One team loses all 3 matches, and the other 3 teams win two each. Should Australia beat Ghana and Serbia, Germany beat Serbia, and Ghana beat Germany, Australia relies on goal difference and is most likely eliminated.
The great difference between the "Pim Verbeek" Dutch style and the "Guus Hiddink" Dutch style is that Hiddink saw attack as a weapon to defend. When Australia lost Luke Wilkshire to a red-card in a warm-up to the Netherlands prior to the 2006 World Cup, he replaced a defender with an attacker. The reasoning was to force Holland to defend rather than to swarm all over Australia.
The attacking mentality applies equally now, even if it's just perceived. Put Josh Kennedy on the field and he draws the attention of two defenders just by standing about. Viduka previously performed this role, even being triple-teamed, which allowed space for others. When you concede the game as Verbeek did, the opposition's pressure to defend is eased and your own space is contracted in which to counter-attack. This was made even worse against Germany when the defence played so high up the field, effectively crushing their own formation.
Against Ghana, Kennedy must play from the start. Chipperfield, known far better as an attacking midfielder and striker in his club career, is wasted in defence and is a poor defender anyway. He should move up. Fitting both Grella and Culina in the team is a luxury. One must go. Grella's had his day (not that I can personally name one) and is becoming an increasing liability with his ruthless tackles and non-existent passing. Kewell plays just off Kennedy, filling the position for the suspended Cahill. Otherwise he'd play as striker with Cahill just off.
In the 4-2-3-1 formation, starting from front, that's Kennedy. Chipperfield, Kewell and Emerton as attacking midfield. Valeri and Culina as the two holding midfielders. Carney, or the better defence-minded Milligan, slots into Chipperfield's previous left slot in the back four. The other option is to leave the existing back four with Chipperfield, and bring back Bresciano. Either way, you have a far more potent-looking attacking team. One that if Ghana did not respect, could destroy them. From reports so far, Ghana are preparing to humiliate Australia. This is exactly the ideal situation.
The 1-1 draw against Ghana was redemption in many ways. Redemption in that coach Pim Verbeek reverted to his tried and tested structure. Redemption in that Australia did not concede the match as they did against Germany. Redemption in that Australia achieved a result against great difficulties. Redemption in that Australia's World Cup destiny is 100% in their hands.
P W D L GS GA GD Pts Ghana 2 1 1 0 2 1 1 4 Germany 2 1 0 1 4 1 3 3 Serbia 2 1 0 1 1 1 0 3 Australia 2 0 1 1 1 5 4- 1
The points table show that regardless of the result in the match between Ghana and Germany, Australia can qualify. In all scenarios, Australia must win their match. Looking at the most difficult to easiest:
1) Germany and Ghana draw, putting Ghana on 5 points and Germany on 4. Australia need to beat Serbia by 7 goals to finish level 4 points with Germany and edge ahead on goals scored. In the unlikely event that the draw involving Germany and Ghana is greater than 4-4, Australia would need 1 extra goal to edge ahead on goal difference.
2) Germany beat Ghana, putting Germany on 6 points and leaving Ghana 4. Australia's win puts them on 4 points as well. Goal difference comes in with a net 5 goals between Australia and Ghana to be closed. This can be done by a combination of both results - ie: Germany win 3-0 and Australia win 2-0; Germany win 1-0 and Australia win 4-0.
3) Ghana beat Germany, putting Ghana on 7 points, leaving Germany on 3 points and putting Australia on 4 points. Australia qualify.
It could have been oh so different had Australia won the game against Ghana. Luke Wilkshire had a chance with 15 minutes left, one-on-one with the goalkeeper, only to poke it straight at his legs. A little dink over the top would have sufficed. Moments early, Scott Chipperfield had a great header chance that went over the bar. Unfortunately the cross was just a little too high.
These chances to win came after a sound defensive effort that sort Ghana rely almost hopelessly on long shots on goal and also another red-card that this time saw Australia play for over an hour with 10 men. Harry Kewell was adjudged to have deliberately handled the ball when he blocked a strike on the goal-line. There's no doubt that it struck Kewell's hand and is a penalty. Whether it was deliberate, that's the controversy. This subjectivity is the sort of grey area in many sports that causes great consternation when entering the equation. The only person that knows truly about their intent is the player. For Kewell, he categorically stated it was an accident. From the referee's perspective, the players are so adept these days at feigning accidental actions and other forms of simulation that one cannot possibly know. Kewell's arm was slightly away from his body making him a bigger obstruction. Whether he deliberately did that or it was simply in the motion of moving to the goal-line and, therefore, natural arm movement. It seemed more the latter. The slow-motion showed a slight arm movement out. Such replays can be deceptive. It also showed a slight retraction of the arm as the ball was approaching - as though Kewell was trying to move his arm away from the ball. Compounding the issue further is that the red card would have been more or less incidental had Ghana's Lee Addy been sent off for a nasty tackle from behind with studs slightly up on Bresciano. The referee ruled yellow. The big surprise was seeing the referee brandish the red to Kewell, because the obvious foul in the box was Lucas Neill pulling down a player. Technically, that foul - if the referee deemed it a foul - occurred first.
The great travesty with the red-card is the brutal punishment on both Kewell and Australia. First, a penalty is conceded, which therefore does not "deny a goal-scoring opportunity" as is the common stipulation to a red-card offence that ordinarily be yellow. A red-card in this case should be more the most blatant of handballs. Second, the team is further penalised with the removal of a player from the pitch for the rest of the game. Thirdly, that player is suspended for the following game. Contrast this with the handball Serbia conceded to Ghana for their penalty in that game. It was unequivocally deliberate. The only difference is that it did not stop a goal. Serbia's player gets yellow, Kewell gets red. The handball rule should be consistent as with the situation outside the box and with other fouls. That is that it's always a free kick or penalty. If it's deliberate, it's a yellow card. If it's outside the box and stops a goal or outright goal-scoring chance (most common incident here is goalkeeper handles the ball outside the box) then a red. Remember, there's the rule for unsportsmanlike conduct. So a player in the box diving or reaching out in the most blatant attempt to stop a goal with his hands is red-carded. If FIFA want to remove the grey area altogether, then for any handball that "denies a goal", a goal is awarded and the player committing the offense receives yellow.
While the spirit in which this result was achieved, it must be remembered that the first half was quite poor. After Brett Holman scored from the Mark Bresciano's rebounded free kick that Ghana's goal-keeper Kingson could only block, Australia were a mess. The goal seemed to pile on the pressure, leaving the team in great panic on any Ghanaian incursion. Going forward, any slight pressure would see the ball passed backwards. Goal-keeper Mark Schwarzer must have had a world record for back-passes received, all the spate of just 20 minutes. The explanation for this can greatly be attributed to the coach. The negative tactics for the game against Germany would have hardly instilled the coach's faith or belief in the players, so too the constant barbs against the ability of many, whether that be verbal or by such actions like dropping players unexpectedly. It kills any confidence, and the team played exactly as a team without confidence. In an ironic way, the red-card would have done wonders restoring the confidence. It's a game that Australia should have won, and would have done so with just 10 men. Eek out a 1-1 draw with 11 men, and it's maybe not so much inspiring.
Faced with an absolute must-win in the final game, Verbeek must make serious decisions to attack. Don't be misled that Verbeek brought out an attacking team for this game against Ghana. All he did was revert to his standard approach of the past 2 years. The substitutions were all obvious. The question is whether he will make a more attacking stance from the start against Serbia. Unless Ghana score early in the concurrent match against Germany, he simply cannot afford to delay. That means Chipperfield on from the start in the forward left role. It's his natural role. Cahill obviously returns for his central midfield role. Holman is left out. The other forced change is Craig Moore. Suspended with a second yellow card in the tournament, Michael Beauchamp is the obvious replacement. It's disappointing for Moore as he returned a game of old, reading the play well.
Up front is a difficult decision. Kennedy works best as a late option otherwise the team is prone to the one dimensional long ball. The lack of strikers in the squad now hurts, as Nikita Rukavytsya is the only left. In that sense, he may start the game, with Kennedy saved for later. Personally, with the poaching instincts of Tim Cahill back in the team, it makes more sense to start with Kennedy. He will attract a couple of defenders and even in the fight for headers, scraps will fall for the likes of Cahill. The fact is that there's little choice.
Ghana 1 Asamoah Gyan (pen 25')
Australia 1 Brett Holman (11')
Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg, South Africa
Attendance: 34,812
Ghana Australia 24(5) Shots (on Goal) 9(4) 22 Fouls 18 6 Corner Kicks 1 2 Offsides 2 54% Possession 46% 3 Yellow Cards 1 0 Red Cards 1 3 Saves 4
Yellow Cards GHA: 19 Lee ADDY (40'), 8 Jonathan MENSAH (79'), 6 Anthony ANNAN (84')
Yellow Cards AUS: 3 Craig MOORE (85')
Red Cards AUS: 10 Harry KEWELL (24')
Ghana were held to a 1-1 draw by ten-man Australia at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium, allowing them them to move to the top of Group D with four points from two matches. The west Africans could not take advantage of the first-half dismissal of Harry Kewell to claim maximum points, and still managed to lift themselves above Serbia and Germany in the section courtesy of Serbia's win over Germany in yesterday's match.
Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac was forced to reshuffle his rearguard due to an injury to Isaac Vorsah, with Jonathan Mensah, who had sufficiently recovered from injury, forming a centre-back partnership with Lee Addy. For his part, Australia coach Pim Verbeek made no fewer than four changes to the side that had been overrun 4-0 by Germany. Harry Kewell started in place of the suspended Tim Cahill up front, with left-back David Carney brought in for Scott Chipperfield. In midfield, Richard Garcia and the injured Vince Grella were replaced by Mark Bresciano and Brett Holman respectively.
After some nervy opening exchanges in front of the watching Germany coach Joachim Low, the Socceroos got the first chance of note on 11 minutes and they duly converted it. Mark Bresciano’s powerful free-kick from 30 yards was only parried by Richard Kingson, with the ball falling kindly for the onrushing Brett Holman, who gleefully fired in the first goal of the tournament for Australia.
Ghana struggled for fluency early on and they had to wait a further ten minutes for their first serious attempt on goal, with Andre Ayew’s shot from the edge of the area stopped only by a crucial Lucas Neil interception. The Black Stars soon restored parity in a moment that proved a hammer blow to Australia's hopes. Asamoah Gyan equalised from the spot after Kewell was adjudged to have stopped Mensah’s shot with his right arm – the Socceroos No10 earning a red card on his long-awaited return after injury. Prince Tagoe then had a chance to put his side into a lead minutes later, only to drill the ball well wide of the left post.
Ghana surged forward in search of their second goal with half-time approaching, and Kevin-Prince Boateng’s shot from the right side of the area only narrowly failed to find the mark, Mark Schwarzer making a fingertip save, of which the referee bizarrely awarded a goal kick. The Black Stars began the second half where they left off in the first, with Kwadwo Asamoah and Gyan trying their luck from distance.
Fleet-footed forward Quincy Owusu-Abeyie was brought on for Tagoe just before the hour, and the Ghanaians still could not find a breakthrough against a resilient Australian defence. For their part, Australia called on Joshua Kennedy in an attempt to take control in the air and they had chances to win the match. Substitute Chipperfield headed over from a Luke Wilkshire cross and Wilkshire himself spurned a glorious opportunity after 72 minutes, shooting straight at Kingson. The Wigan Athletic goalkeeper then did well to stop a volley from Kennedy.
Despite their numerical disadvantage, Australia kept on attacking and Verbeek also sent on striker Nikita Rukavytsya for Wilkshire. At the opposite end, the Black Stars might have scored a late winner if Mensah’s header had not went just wide of the right post and Owusu-Abeyie’s curling shot was not tipped over by Schwarzer.
Milovan Rajevac, Ghana coach: The match was quite difficult because we had youngsters in the team, but they started to fight for the result. We tried to score a second but could not convert our chances. All my players had a good game and we have four points now. We will have to see how it goes in the match against Germany.
Pim Verbeek, Australia coach: We went ahead and it was going well. Once we went down to ten men we had to work very hard, and I think that’s what they did. I’m proud of the players – playing with a man less for that long is not easy. We’re still in the race but it’s going to be difficult now. We need to win against Serbia and score at least three or four goals. Ok, that’s the job.
Asamoah Gyan, Ghana forward: They took the opportunity early on, and we had to come back and equalise. But we knew we would. We are now looking forward to our last game against Germany. Let’s see what happens. It’s not going to easy but we want to qualify.
Brett Holman, Australia midfielder: Great feeling to score a goal but would have preferred to get a victory and three points. The main thing was we didn’t concede early today, and we did that and also scored a goal ourselves. That gave us a big boost. You would think Ghana should roll over the top of us with ten men but we dug in and fought for each other, and that is a complement to our boys.
Andre Ayew, Ghana winger: What was important was not to lose. But we were playing ten against 11 for a long time and when it’s in a competition like this, you have to do better. We should have capitalised but we need to forget about this. We need to focus on Germany. It’s going to be an important game.
If only Australia brought the right tactics into the game against Germany.
If only Tim Cahill avoided being red-carded.
If only Australia received the penalty for a German handball early in the second half to have brought the score back to 2-1.
If only Harry Kewell was not red-carded against Ghana.
If only Luke Wilkshire scored that open chance against Ghana to give Australia the win.
If only Serbia had drawn with Ghana rather than concede the match-winning penalty with a stupid handball.
If only Ghana could beat Germany.
If only...
If only...
It could go on forever.
This World Cup will be remembered as "if only". Australia returned equal results at the group stage of a win, a draw and a loss, as they did in 2006, and against tougher opposition, only to just miss out on goal difference for a round of 16 match against the USA.
For a moment, the dream was alive. Australia had scored two quick goals, while Germany just went ahead in the concurrent match against Ghana. A total of two more goals from either game would have been enough. Or, if Ghana could manage a win over a Germany. Alas, Serbia finally got their much deserved goal to keep their hopes alive with only a draw now needed based on goals scored, and Germany vs Ghana ended 1-0.
Of course, the "if only" had elements the other way. Serbia had many chances in the first half, controlling the game, and really should have scored at least one, maybe two. A combination of great saving by Mark Schwarzer, and poor-finishing and laziness to stay onside by Serbia, cost them. There was also a very late call for a handball on Tim Cahill. While totally accidental from it bobbing off contested heads and landing on one of the many arms about, such has been Australia's misfortune this World Cup with refereeing decisions is that it could have been called. The Serbs were furious. The question: would they have been as vociferous in their protests against a penalty awarded if they were the team that allegedly infringed? No.
It was only as Serbia tired and coach Pim Verbeek injected more pace into the side with Brett Holman and Scott Chipperfield coming on that Australia began to look dangerous. Opportunities quickly arose, most typically with Tim Cahill in the 69th minute scoring one of his custom headers and then Holman running the ball through an open midfield blasting home from 30 metres out on 73 minutes. Once Serbia snatched a goal back 10 minutes later, the momentum swung back and the greater cause now was to hold on for the win.
Chronology is an amazing occurrence. After the debacle against Germany in the first game, Australia leaves South Africa with heads high and pride restored. Reverse the match order with Germany the last match, and it's a bright start followed by humiliation.
Despite the horror game against Germany that should long haunt this nation, this campaign should be seen in a positive light. Australia is no where near the level that it should expect to qualify to the knockout phase. The most that Australians want is that the team competes. That is profoundly not typical of that game against Germany, just as it's profoundly typical of the games against Ghana and Serbia - at least in parts where Australia made the run and battled adversity, rather than sit back and capitalise on random opportunities. Unleashed from their timid conservatism that Verbeek and moulded over 2 years, players like Craig Moore and Lucas Neill excelled. Craig Moore was, especially, a different player once he was staked with great individual responsibility. The same can be said of his replacement against Serbia, Michael Beauchamp. None of these defenders are players that are to be used in a defensive fashion of parking numbers behind the ball. This confidence in individuals then allows other players to attack and, indeed, more attacking players and formations to be used. This element of the team wasn't seen further because of the over-burden of the ultra conservative style on players for so long that they lost the ability to apply sustained pressure on an opposition. Often, for the rare times in control, they still never looked confident. That leads to the coach.
For Pim Verbeek, ridiculed and tagged the "Pimbercile" for the extraordinary crazed tactics against Germany, there's somewhat a redemption for the fact his style of probability and opportunism gained 4 points - a tally that many would find acceptable before the World Cup. Some of his squad selections worked, like Beauchamp and Holman. The omission of Scott McDonald didn't. Australia proved desperately short on striking options. On the field, Australia got the expected opportunities to score goals, especially against Ghana and Serbia. The aspect that betrayed these tactics was the faith in the team's defensive abilities. Playing meek and often timid Asian opposition was no guide to the true soundness of the Australian defensive unit. In fact, as history under the Hiddink era showed and the general aging and slowing of team portended, World Cup teams would readily expose Australia. Just as in 2006, Australia conceded goals in every game and two of the three warm-up games. If you pride your strategy on clean sheets and you fail to deliver this key component, then you fail as a strategist. Only Verbeek himself would know whether he legitimately believed the Australian defence was so good, or entered the World Cup simply hoping for the best.
*The Socceroo Realm will return with an expanded synopsis of the Cup campaign, including the surrounding issues and any fall-out. Just after I get some work done, catch NZ's game vs Paraguay tonight, get some sleep and check the blathering from the general media.
Australia 2: Tim Cahill (69'), Brett Holman (73')
Serbia 1: Marko Pantelic (84')
Stadium: Mbombela Stadium
Attendance: 37,836
Australia Serbia 17(7) Shots (on Goal) 23(6) 25 Fouls 10 5 Corner Kicks 6 1 Offsides 7 45% Possession 55% 3 Yellow Cards 2 0 Red Cards 0 5 Saves 5
Yellow Cards AUS: Michael Beauchamp (49), Luke Wilkshire (50), Brett Emerton (67)
Yellow Cards SRB: Aleksandar Lukovic (18), Milos Ninkovic (59)
Australia got the win they wanted in Nelspruit on Wednesday night, not that it was enough as the number of goals they needed saw the Socceroos were eliminated from Group D on goal difference behind Ghana. Germany, 1-0 winners over Ghana in Johannesburg, topped the group on six points, while the Aussies and Ghanaians finished on four and the Serbians three.
Man of the Match Tim Cahill was back in the team, after being dismissed in the ultimately decisive 4-0 opening loss to the Germans, and it was the Everton man who scored the crucial opening goal of the match on 69 minutes. Substitute Brett Holman doubled the lead just four minutes later before Marko Pantelic pulled one back late on to set up a grandstand finish.
Both teams approached the encounter at the Mbombela Stadium knowing they needed to win and the game started at a high tempo. Serbia's Milos Krasic was an early danger down their right wing, testing goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer at his near post inside the first five minutes. In the 12th minute, Krasic had an even better chance when sprung free in the box by Milos Ninkovic's defence-splitting pass after an Australia corner. The CSKA Moscow man took it too wide and could not get his shot on target around the advancing Schwarzer.
Krasic then turned provider, finding Zdravko Kuzmanovic streaking into the area. He fired well wide when he might have done better in the 16th minute. Another pass from the right in the 23rd minute picked out Branislav Ivanovic, who pulled the ball back well from close range, but Schwarzer reacted quickly to save with his out-stretched left arm. The onslaught against Australia left-back David Carney continued in the 34th minute as Ivanovic crossed to a loosely marked Nikola Zigic. The Serbia striker did not connect cleanly and the ball slid off his head. Four minutes later, Krasic did have the ball in the back of the Australian net, only to be narrowly called offside.
The two best chances of the first half for the Asian Zone representatives fell to Cahill. The Everton midfielder who headed wide just after the half-hour mark and then lost his footing in the 39th minute after Carney had picked him out all alone in the middle of the Serbian box. Pim Verbeek's side then came out with more purpose in the second half and two long-range efforts put a lump in Serbian throats. First, Jason Culina blazed wide from 25 yards after the defence failed to clear a free-kick, and Bresciano then stung the goalkeeper's hands with a blast from just outside the area when given too much space.
Though the Serbians continued to create chances as well, with Zigic firing over from close range and Kuzmanovic heading over from near the penalty spot, it was the Aussies who found the net. Again talisman Cahill was the inspiration, showing more determination to leap over the defence and head in a long cross. As Serbia pushed for the equaliser, Australia produced another moment of brilliance, this time from Holman, who picked the ball up near his halfway line and screamed in a long-range shot low into Vladimir Stojkovic's goal.
With their South Africa 2010 hopes slipping away, the eastern Europeans battled forward and second-half substitute Zoran Tosic was a constant threat. It was his hard shot that was spilled by Schwarzer, and fellow substitute Pantelic was first to the ball for an easy score. Remarkably that meant that the Serbians could have gone through with another goal. Despite some goalmouth opportunities, they did not force a save from Schwarzer, while, at the other end, Culina did have a one-on-one bravely saved by Stojkovic in the final moments.
Pim Verbeek, Australia, coach: I am disappointed, but we were not good enough in the end. We gave away some chances, and it was those that hurt us. At half-time, I told the boys that we had another 45 minutes to get a result - that it was an all or nothing situation. We needed that extra bit of luck at 2-0, to go up 3-0. The boys were fantastic. I'm just disappointed. We earned four points in the tournament, but the Germany game killed us.
Tim Cahill, midfielder and Man of the Match, Australia: We knew what we had to do and try to put them under pressure and it worked pretty well. We have been through some hard times and we have been up against it. I found myself getting in behind (the defenders) and playing off the shoulder. I felt it was only a matter of time before I got another chance and when it was there I just tried to get a good contact. I’m just buzzing to hit the back of the net because this time last week my World Cup was over.
Radomir Antic, Serbia, coach: This was a game of good quality. I cannot reproach any of my players for their effort. We had plenty of opportunities. We deserved much more than we got.
Nemanja Vidic, Serbia, defender: It is a very sombre atmosphere in the dressing room because we played a very good first half, the best since beating Romania 5-0 in the qualifiers. Australia were more aggressive in the second and we ran out of steam after they started pounding us with long balls and sharp crosses into our penalty box. We are very disappointed because we expected to reach the knockout stage of the competition, especially after beating Germany and giving ourselves a good chance of progressing.
11/06 16:00 Johannesburg - JSC South Africa 1:1 Mexico 11/06 20:30 Cape Town Uruguay 0:0 France 16/06 20:30 Pretoria South Africa 0:3 Uruguay 17/06 20:30 Polokwane France 0:2 Mexico 22/06 16:00 Rustenburg Mexico 0:1 Uruguay 22/06 16:00 Mangaung/Bloemfont France 1:2 South Africa
Team P W D L F A Pts Uruguay 3 2 1 0 4 0 7 Mexico 3 1 1 1 3 2 4 South Africa 3 1 1 1 3 5 4 France 3 0 1 2 1 4 1
12/06 16:00 Johannesburg - JEP Argentina 1:0 Nigeria 12/06 13:30 Port Elizabeth Korea Republic 2:0 Greece 17/06 16:00 Bloemfontein Greece 2:1 Nigeria 17/06 13:30 Johannesburg - JSC Argentina 4:1 Korea Republic 22/06 20:30 Durban Nigeria 2:2 Korea Republic 22/06 20:30 Polokwane Greece 0:2 Argentina
Team P W D L F A Pts Argentina 3 3 0 0 7 1 9 Korea Republic 3 1 1 1 5 6 4 Greece 3 1 0 2 2 5 3 Nigeria 3 0 1 2 3 5 1
12/06 20:30 Rustenburg England 1:1 USA 13/06 13:30 Polokwane Algeria 0:1 Slovenia 18/06 16:00 Johannesburg - JEP Slovenia 2:2 USA 18/06 20:30 Cape Town England 0:0 Algeria 23/06 16:00 Port Elizabeth Slovenia 0:1 England 23/06 16:00 Pretoria USA 1:0 Algeria
Team P W D L F A Pts USA 3 1 2 0 4 3 5 England 3 1 2 0 2 1 5 Slovenia 3 1 1 1 3 3 4 Algeria 3 0 1 2 0 2 1
13/06 20:30 Durban Germany 4:0 Australia 13/06 16:00 Pretoria Serbia 0:1 Ghana 18/06 13:30 Port Elizabeth Germany 0:1 Serbia 19/06 16:00 Rustenburg Ghana 1:1 Australia 23/06 20:30 Johannesburg - JSC Ghana 0:1 Germany 23/06 20:30 Nelspruit Australia 2:1 Serbia
Team P W D L F A Pts Germany 3 2 0 1 5 1 6 Ghana 3 1 1 1 2 2 4 Australia 3 1 1 1 3 6 4 Serbia 3 1 0 2 2 3 3
14/06 13:30 Johannesburg - JSC Netherlands 2:0 Denmark 14/06 16:00 Bloemfontein Japan 1:0 Cameroon 19/06 13:30 Durban Netherlands 1:0 Japan 19/06 20:30 Pretoria Cameroon 1:2 Denmark 24/06 20:30 Rustenburg Denmark 1:3 Japan 24/06 20:30 Cape Town Cameroon 1:2 Netherlands
Team P W D L F A Pts Netherlands 3 3 0 0 5 1 9 Japan 3 2 0 1 4 2 6 Denmark 3 1 0 2 3 6 3 Cameroon 3 0 0 3 2 5 0
14/06 20:30 Cape Town Italy 1:1 Paraguay 15/06 13:30 Rustenburg New Zealand 1:1 Slovakia 20/06 13:30 Bloemfontein Slovakia 0:2 Paraguay 20/06 16:00 Nelspruit Italy 1:1 New Zealand 24/06 16:00 Johannesburg - JEP Slovakia 3:2 Italy 24/06 16:00 Polokwane Paraguay 0:0 New Zealand
Team P W D L F A Pts Paraguay 3 1 2 0 3 1 5 Slovakia 3 1 1 1 4 5 4 New Zealand 3 0 3 0 2 2 3 Italy 3 0 2 1 4 5 2
15/06 16:00 Port Elizabeth Côte d'Ivoire 0:0 Portugal 15/06 20:30 Johannesburg - JEP Brazil 2:1 Korea DPR 20/06 20:30 Johannesburg - JSC Brazil 3:1 Côte d'Ivoire 21/06 13:30 Cape Town Portugal 7:0 Korea DPR 25/06 16:00 Durban Portugal 0:0 Brazil 25/06 16:00 Nelspruit Korea DPR 0:3 Côte d'Ivoire
Team P W D L F A Pts Brazil 3 2 1 0 5 2 7 Portugal 3 1 2 0 7 0 5 Côte d'Ivoire 3 1 1 1 4 3 4 Korea DPR 3 0 0 3 1 12 0
16/06 13:30 Nelspruit Honduras 0:1 Chile 16/06 16:00 Durban Spain 0:1 Switzerland 21/06 16:00 Port Elizabeth Chile 1:0 Switzerland 21/06 20:30 Johannesburg - JEP Spain 2:0 Honduras 25/06 20:30 Pretoria Chile 1:2 Spain 25/06 20:30 Bloemfontein Switzerland 0:0 Honduras
Team P W D L F A Pts Spain 3 2 0 1 4 2 6 Chile 3 2 0 1 3 2 6 Switzerland 3 1 1 1 1 1 4 Honduras 3 0 1 2 0 3 1
26/06 16:00 Port Elizabeth Uruguay 2:1 Korea Republic 26/06 20:30 Rustenburg USA 1:2 Ghana (ET) 27/06 16:00 Bloemfontein Germany 4:1 England 27/06 20:30 Johannesburg - JSC Argentina 3:1 Mexico 28/06 16:00 Durban Netherlands 2:1 Slovakia 28/06 20:30 Johannesburg - JSC Brazil 3:0 Chile 29/06 16:00 Pretoria Paraguay 0:0 Japan (PK 5:3) 29/06 20:30 Cape Town Spain 1:0 Portugal
02/07 16:00 Port Elizabeth Netherlands 2:1 Brazil 02/07 20:30 Johannesburg - JSC Uruguay 1:1 Ghana (PK 4:2) 03/07 16:00 Cape Town Argentina 0:4 Germany 03/07 20:30 Johannesburg Paraguay 0:1 Spain
06/07 20:30 Cape Town Uruguay 2:3 Netherlands 07/07 20:30 Durban Germany 0:1 Spain
10/07 20:30 Port Elizabeth Uruguay 2:3 Germany
11/07 20:30 Johannesburg - JSC Netherlands 0:1 Spain (ET)