Like a thief in the night, the Socceroos have fought back from a goal down to post a crucial 2-1 victory over Iraq and breath life into Australia’s World Cup dreams.
There was drama, there was concern, and then there was disaster. And then, like many key Socceroo matches, there was some elation provided by two of the old guard.
Best mates Tim Cahill and Archie Thompson popped up to nod home two quick-fire goals late in the match to put Australia in equal second spot in our World Cup qualifying group at the halfway point.
And to save a nation’s blushes.
The corner flag took the kind of pounding that Mike Tyson used to give out in his prime, and the Iraqis were crushed. With 10 minutes left in the match, they had held a 1-0 lead after a clinical goal scored on the break in the 72nd minute.
Heartbreak beckoned for the Socceroos.
But in stepped veterans Cahill and Thompson to resurrect the Socceroos and beleagured coach Holger Osieck with six minutes left.
This was a match that once again showed the fighting spirit and never-give-up attitude that personifies the Socceroos. It was a backs-against-the wall performance.
The Socceroos started promisingly, with Matt McKay at left back and no room for Mark Bresciano in the starting XI.
There was an early header chance to Alex Brosque, while Robbie Kruse and Cahill were lively in the opening exchanges. The first half finished 0-0, with Australia dominating possession but struggling to create clear-cut chances.
Iraq had threatened on the counter and they started the better in the second half.
Luke Wilkshire almost gave a penalty in the 49th minute, and then the Socceroos should have potted a goal after two good opportunities. Cahill laid off the ball for Jedinak, who blazed wide, and then McKay cut the ball back from Kruse who fired a wayward shot.
Lucas Neill was also a bit lucky not to receive a red card after tugging the shot of an Iraqi attacker on goal.
Australia would rue the missed opportunities when a poor pass led to the loss of the ball in midfield and a long ball caught us out.
Iraq finished easily to go 1-0 up and the dark clouds appeared.
Thompson then came on for Brosque and after that Tommy Oar made his way on the field for Kruse.
Both substitutes played a big part in the Socceroos revival.
After Cahill – yet again Australia’s hero – scored from a corner, ageless Archie made a fantastic run into the box. Oar, who had looked good with little time to show his wares, floated a beautiful cross in and Thompson rose to glance it home.
The EuroSport commentator stated that the Socceroos had stolen victory “from the jaws of the defeat”, and this wasn’t far off the truth.
Australia’s road to Brazil is on track, but only just. Neill and Valeri both picked up yellows and miss the next match.
The Socceroos have four matches to play, three of which are at home, and are on equal second points with Oman on 5. Japan top the group with 10 points.
Australia again struggled to create goal-scoring opportunities and to open up their opposition.
While Spiranovic was solid and McKay good in defence, Valeri and Jedinak as a pairing does not work in central midfield.
Both won a lot of ball, and in general, the Socceroos dominated possession. But they are far too defensive-minded and the final pass usually went missing.
For the next game, Ognenvoski will most probably come in at the back and either Bresciano or Holland in the middle.
Space should also be found for Oar.
He showed enough, with his skills and turn of pace, and he deserves more of an opportunity.
Australia’s lack of a real striker was again glaring. Brosque was ineffectual for long periods and Cahill, who always tried hard, has never been an out and out forward.
Thompson, who has now scored three goals from the past three games, showed the ability of a real goal-poacher, and shoved two fingers up those who had criticized him.
His form has backed up his selection and demonstrated the lack of goals in this Australian team – scoring three on each occasion in limited minutes off the bench.
The Socceroos remain a work in progress but they leave Qatar with their head’s held high and with all three points for the first time in this qualifying competition.
They might not have one foot on the plane to Brazil yet, more like four toes. But they have given the kiss of life to a stuttering campaign at a time when it was needed more than ever.
Twitter: @johnnyddavidson
Bondy.
Guest
On the game against Iraq would you have preffered to have won the asian cup like Iraq did and be where they are now " lost " and not going to a world cup again or the consistant aussie's with a 70% chance of making world cup finals.
Towser
Guest
Yes Mid a difficult problem local or overseas for all but the coaches in the top leagues in the world. Even then no guarantee. The EPL is in the big 4 leagues ,but you could hardly say home grown coaches have set the world on fire. DIfficult problem ,maybe a 4 year term isn't enough for developing football countries like Australia,maybe 8 years is better as the NT coach. Pim leaves,Holger starts from scratch. A 4 year term, WC qualifying the main aim, no incentive for either to really care about the state of the game in Australia after they leave. Then again its a gamble because it would have to be a proven coach, a winner at the highest level.
Midfielder
Guest
Tow Agree about the local coach... the issue is further compounded when a local coach is appointed key players playing with big overseas clubs who have coaches with high rep's find it difficult to command the shed respect... As an example the crap that cranky Frankie copped over the Ned / Oken thing and GA with the senior players of his side ... BTW I am not defending either Frank or GA just highlighting without overseas coaching positions it's difficult for a local coach... Hopefully some our current coaches go overseas to larger clubs and then come back as national coach.... GA is rumoured to have stayed with the Mariners for another year because a few big Japanese clubs want him...from Japan to say Europe .... say within seven years GA has coached a side in Japan & Europe he could then command not demand respect... same for Popa and AP...
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
jb Sure, we've played really well in some friendlies. And, yes, teams don't like losing friendlies but there's no comparison with meaningful & competitive matches - WCQs, Asian Qualifiers or tournament matches. I can't recall meaningful matches in the past 35 years, when AUS - for 90 minutes - dominated possession in the midfield, exhibited creative flair in transition, had our defence untroubled & put the chances away. We did play some terrific football in patches against JPN a few months ago but, even this performance, has been criticised!
jbinnie
Guest
fuss- You have never at any time heard me trying to compare the Socceroos with Germany or Spain.What I do try to do is compare the Socceroos of today with performances in the near past.Take the infamous "friendly" when they totally outplayed a first choice England team forcing the England manager at the time, the world class Eriksson, to change nearly a whole team at half time. This did not happen in the far distant past it was only 9 years ago.Since then I have seen many Socceroo teams perform well ,against better opposition than thls Iraq team, (and their rise in world rankings mirrored this) so,taking the importance of the situation,the humidity,the money spent today on preparation, et al. I do reserve the right ,as a fan, to express an opinion on how I perceive a team is performing and this team did not perform at a standard that I now expect to see from my national team.That of course is an opinion but I would be prepared to debate the issue with anyone in front of a replay of the game. Your mate jb
fadida
Guest
There have been very few "glory days", and I doubt anyone is living in the past. What we expect is to see a bit more than a Valeri Jedinak midfield when we are dominating a game but creating nothing. We expect to see more than our keeper knocking it long, and the inability to keep possession against a weak opponent. We aren't expecting a WC win, or a win v Japan even, but we expect any decent coach to know when to make changes to win a game, rather than making changes because we are suddenly losing a game. It isn't beyond our current technical level to be able to play a higher tempo possession game where we keep possession for 5 passes without chipping the ball into the box. I like Holger, he is always polite and positive in interviews, but he is becoming increasingly conservative and running out of ideas (and options, due to his reliance on those he knows). Had we not got lucky and we lost 1-0 would people be saying "it's the result that counts"? The big picture is even with the resources we should expect more more intelligent performances from both players and coach.
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
jb I agree with your assessment completely. I know you've been following football even longer than I, so can you tell me ... ... when in the past 35 years has the AUS NT displayed the technical & tactical attributes you've outlined above? Why do we think adult players will suddenly be able to play like Germany or Spain? Guus Hiddink certainly brought a level of discipline & structure to our team but, as far as I'm concerned, WC2006 we were totally outplayed in every game - including the opening match against JPN. Perhaps, the match against CRO, we broke even in the midfield. There seems to be a tendency amongst AUS football fans to reminisce about "glory days in the past" that don't reflect what really occurred.
Towser
Guest
Watched the replay last night on SBS. Overall wasn't that flash by Australia ,but neither were Iraq. Both teams when I saw them at Suncorp a few years ago played better. Impressed by Robbie Kruse's improvement since leaving the Roar. Whats happened to Holman? Seems to have gone backwards regarding NT performances since joining Villa. As for this team playing to their potential, maybe this is their potential. Oar,Holland pop their head in ,but thats all. There should be players with a bunsen burner firmly trained on Thompson,Cahill Schwarzer,Neills backside . Surely theres better than Valeri & Jedinak ,not an ounce of creative blood in them. Jedinak more a Jedi warrior than footballer. Holger his body language told the story as others indicated. Iraq goal,there goes my paycheck. Cahill scores Butter on the toast instead of drippin.Archie scores, 5 nights at the Doha Hilton in the penthouse. Call it cynical,I call it the truth. These guys Pim,Holger are paid Football mercenarys.OK they might have the occasional Karaoke session singing the National anthem,but its to appease the natives. Long term view of Aussie Football,zilch. There are fans calling for a better coach from overseas. Would they be better? Still just a job to them. No coincidence that in my lifetime I cant remember a World Cup winner who wasn't coached by one of its own. Problem is that Aussie coaches just aren't experienced enough Internationally,but I guarantee that they are more in tune with who's performing currently than an overseas coach,because they care more deep down. So maybe it is a coaching issue above all else & until Australian coaches are qualified enough to take over from the Karaoke mob theres sweet FA to be done.
fadida
Guest
Agree completely jbinnie. And dasilva, some of us who have played, coached and watched the game for 30 years would actually argue that we honestly do know as much as Holger. The game is really quite simple :)
dasilva
Guest
Oh yeah as jbinnie also points out It's not whether holger knows more than us. It's whether you can implement your knowledge and have the team playing well You don't have to know how to get a national team to play good football (i'm sure that 99% of fans don't know how to do that) to recognise that the team isn't playing good football and the coach isn't doing its job. So yeah, holger is a better manager then me and most fans. Although I hope that we have more expectation on the performance of the national side manager than that
jbinnie
Guest
Fuss -What is it you are tryng to say here?.Osiek put this team on the field & I would assume he did so with the full intent of outplaying the opposition & getting 3 points.This was done & for that we must be eternally thankful but as coach/manager/selector he must also take some flak for the way this team performed for 80 minutes of the game & anyone with half an ounce of skill in reading body language would have said he was an extremely disappointed man at the 75 minute mark. The Socceroos dominated possession ,of that there is no doubt,stats prove it, but it was what was accomplished with that possssion that left a lot to be desired.I did not see the Jordan game so am not drawing comparisons, but sitting watching this team play last night I did compare player performance with what I would expect from an international class player.I was not impressed.Transition of the ball from the rear to the front was at times totally amateurish & if we continue to build these "possession figures" by counting back & square balls played in our own back third, while the opposition backs off & regroups, then we are kidding ourselves. Why are we so slow across the length of the field?,why do we give away so much possession?,why can't we convert possession into more good finishing?,why do we keep getting caught out "on the break"?. One does not have to be Alex Ferguson or Mourhino to ask these questions,as people who have watched & studied the game for many,many years are not fools, & can see where many errors are causing breakdown in movement,& it is in this area that Osiek has to come up with answers or the outcome will be inevitable.Time IS running down & every true fan is entitled to expect improvement. 3 points apart, that improvement was not evident in last night's overall performance & I refuse point blank to believe that any of those professional players,sitting down to watch a film of the game, would disagree. Forget the spirit,the fightback, etc. concentrate on how each individual performed relative to the team's standard of play. jb
Football Authority
Roar Rookie
What does that say, when you aren't playing well, most of your players are too old and your younger players aren't good enough yet - and we still win and look good to qualify for Brazil 2014. Any more critics of the move to Asian football?
Midfielder
Guest
In the position we are in lets all dance a little...watch just to see the crowd react http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ixsn81SqU6E
dasilva
Guest
I know that Holger knows more about football and tactics than me and most of the fans However when fans are upset of Holger .They aren't saying they know better or more than Holger. they are saying that Holger isn't getting the socceroos to play to their potential and there could be other coaches who know better and are just as qualified (if not more so) than Holger who could do a better job than him. Also criticising and scrutinising the coach decision is all part of the fun of being a fan of any sport. without that there really isn't much to talk about in between games. Sure we might not know as much as the coach but
Bondy.
Guest
Couldnt agree more Phil with Langerak.
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
philipcoates I was crestfallen when the goal went in. But, believe me, I've been following the AUS NT since 1977, and being crestfallen is inherent to my love for the AUS NT. I was crestfallen when in 1977, at Olympic Park (my 1st live viewing of the National Team), when we went 0-1 down to Iran (yes, the same country who would break my heart on the other side of Brunton Avenue, 20 years later). I was crestfallen when we lost to NZL in 1981 and missed out on the greatest FIFA WC tournament of my lifetime. I was crestfallen when Kossie & Jimmy Patikas couldn't get the ball past Jimmy Leighton at Olympic Park in 1985 against SCO. I was crestfallen after driving up from Melbourne to the Sydney Football Stadium in 1989 (on the same day as the Hillsborough Disaster) Charlie Yankos slipped, ISR scored & the ref didn't play the full stoppage time as AUS were charging forward. I was crestfallen in 1993 when the cruelest of swerves saw an Alex Tobin clearance fall into the ARG net in Buenos Aires I was crestfallen in 1997 .... well, let's not say any more ... I was crestfallen in 2001 when we couldn't get that 1 away goal in Montevideo that would have helped us qualify. Being a True Believer is filled with moments of utter utter devastation. But, by heck the good times make it all worthwhile! :-)
cruyff turn
Roar Rookie
I concur with all the above. Regarding the second point, how about introducing Erik Paartalu, and play him in a central midfield combo with McKay? Hell, it worked a treat at Brisbane! Or even Aaron Mooy, who's so far looked very impressive this season. We looked so utterly predictable in the front third that maybe someone like Mooy, or Rogic with his close control and vision, would be a welcome addition. And if Davidson's still not fit, then throw Goodwin into the fray. Sure, he's only been around for five minutes, but let's fast-track him. His confidence is up, and he seems like a quick learner. I remember Stan Lazaridis getting called up for the national team during his first year in the NSL - and he had Tony Vidmar and Jason Van Blerk as LB competition! In fact, all of the old hands - Schwarzer, Wilkshire, Neill, Bresc, Cahill - should be rested. I'm with you Brendo. Time to see what the young blokes can do.
The Bear
Guest
Points well made, das
Philip Coates
Roar Guru
Schwarzer must have some dirt on someone in high places to keep getting a game even in our friendly matches - blimey, does he really need the match practice!!!??? I'd put Mitch Langerak in goal and give the kid some experience in international matches. The day will come when Schwarzer will be injured, or off picking up his pension cheque, and our other goalies (and we have a few great goalies) will be thrown in without having had opportunity to work with the defence in match conditions.
Philip Coates
Roar Guru
double post