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As the Socceroos demolished Bangladesh in a clinical first-half display, there was one player who stood out. Not just for his performance, but for his attitude, hunger and determination.
It was not Aaron Mooy, who was man of the match despite only playing 45 minutes, but the teammate he provided two assists for.
Not only did Tim Cahill score a hat-trick in the 4-0 victory, but more importantly he was the motivator and leader in a game which posed as a potential banana peel.
It could be argued that those traits were not necessary against a lacklustre and poor Bangladeshi team, who showed little resistance against an injury-riddled Socceroos squad.
Yet the opposition’s poor quality made Cahill’s desire even more impressive.
Perhaps he held selfish thoughts – seeing a chance to burgeon his goal tally – but it provided the rest of the team with the drive needed to ward off complacency.
The opener was a gift after Mooy delivered a dangerous but relatively harmless free kick into the box. The Bangladeshi defence was woefully inept, allowing Cahill to head past Sahidul Alam without even jumping off the ground.
It was his celebration that was most noteworthy, however.
Against a minnow, against a team many fans had written off, Cahill celebrated his 43rd international goal like it was at a World Cup. While captain Mile Jedinak calmly picked up the ball and trotted back to the halfway line, Cahill was visibly pumping up his teammates – and the pep talk worked.
From there the Socceroos were ruthless, laying on another three goals before half-time.
Cahill’s second came through sheer determination at a time when the Socceroos were struggling to find a killer second. Following neat linkup play between Mooy and debutant Josh Risdon, Cahill scrapped with three defenders and the keeper for what felt like an eternity, eventually prodding the ball home with an acrobatic, improvised mid-air effort.
It was not the prettiest goal, but the fight to get it over the line summed up Cahill’s style perfectly.
The hat-trick goal came from the Socceroos’ best play of the 90 minutes, Matt McKay releasing Mooy with a neat first-time flick and the Melbourne Heart midfielder picking out Cahill for a tap-in.
Mooy was again involved to deliver the free kick for Jedinak to head home Bailey Wright’s knock down and complete the scoring.
The second half was a dull affair, and a disappointing effort from the Socceroos considering goal difference could play a huge role in Group B.
Substitutes Tommy Oar and James Troisi failed to impress in replacing the creative forces of Mooy and Massimo Luongo, and Nathan Burns remained the only real danger going forward. Even Cahill could not ward off complacency with his side 4-0 up.
Good news filtered through in the early hours of Wednesday morning, however, with Kyrgyzstan producing a 1-0 victory over Jordan to keep the Socceroos top of Group B with a two-point buffer.
Don’t call it an upset either, as Kyrgyzstan welcomed back returning stars Anton Zemlyanukhin, Mirlan Murzaev and Vitalij Lux, three players who had been missing last week in Canberra but had caused Australia major problems in Bishkek.
Zemlyanukhin proved the difference, producing a piece of outrageous individual talent to turn one Jordanian defender, stream past another and fire low past goalkeeper Amer Shafi.
It was a huge result for both Kyrgyzstan and Australia, who now require potentially just four points from their final two qualifying matches. With a goal difference of 14-plus beating Jordan’s 10-plus, a draw with their top-spot rivals in March next year should be sufficient, as long as they defeat Tajikistan four days earlier.
Cahill, however, will be alongside Ange Postecoglou demanding six points to stamp Australia’s dominance ahead of the second round of World Cup qualifying.
Having personally questioned the veteran’s chances of making the 2018 World Cup, the prospect is becoming a little hard to ignore. At 35 it would appear he has no hope, but while he is still banging in goals and running around like a 25-year-old, Cahill is doing himself no harm.
He has repeatedly expressed how he left the English Premier League to play in the MLS and Chinese Super League in a bid to extend his international career, and it is proving fruitful.
There have been suggestions on The Roar that Cahill is the best Australian sportsperson after Don Bradman, and although it is easy to get lost in praise a sobering assessment must be made.
It is an impossible claim to make, given he may not even be Australia’s best footballer.
Harry Kewell, Ned Zelic, Mark Schwarzer and Mark Viduka are just a few names that must be considered from a critic with a post-1988 birth date.
Cahill falls behind Kewell in natural technical abilities, and possesses nowhere near the close ball control and physicality of Dukes. Both footballers also played huge roles in growing the popularity of football Down Under.
Yet it is hard to argue that there has been a more passionate, determined and hungry beast to appear in the green and gold than Cahill. His insatiable thirst for goals is impressive and looks nowhere near like drying up.
Cahill also has a canny knack of putting the ball in the net, something no other Socceroo has managed to achieve with such regularity. And we all love a good goalscorer.
Many others have tried, some with more natural talent than Cahill, yet many have failed.
The way Viduka graced the football pitch was a joy to watch. He was not the type to rush defenders and harry them tirelessly, but when he received possession it stuck like Clag. One of the last true centre forwards, watching Viduka in action was always a pleasure.
Yet Viduka scored just 11 goals in 43 games for the Socceroos, despite boasting a far superior rate in club football. And most past Socceroos that do boast impressive tallies had the advantage of competing in Oceania. Most of Cahill’s arrived after the AFC move.
Archie Thompson, third all-time goalscorer with 28, scored 13 against American Samoa. John Aloisi, placed fourth, scored five against the Solomon Islands, as did Damian Mori, who is Cahill’s closest competitor with 29 international goals.
The hat-trick against Jordan was only Cahill’s second three-goal haul. It makes Cahill’s current record of 45 from 88 easily unrivalled, and there should be little doubt he will reach the half-century and perhaps beyond.
Best Socceroo? Debatable. Most hungry and potent goalscorer? Without a doubt.
For all the Socceroos’ dominance over Bangladesh, and yet another dazzling performance from new fans’ favourite Mooy, it was Cahill’s desire and drive that stood out.
Let it continue in March next year against Tajikistan and Jordan. Let it continue until the World Cup in three years time, as long as he keeps scoring.
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