The Socceroos had high hopes of qualifying for the World Cup in 2002 – helped in no small part by an excellent showing at the Confederations Cup.
We’ll never know what might have been had Frank Farina’s team qualified for the first ever co-hosted tournament in Japan and South Korea.
A tournament played out in prime time watched by millions in living rooms across Australia, its popularity seemed to take Channel Nine by surprise – they’d gambled on the Socceroos qualifying for the finals and paid $10 million to broadcast 16 games.
And given Australia’s performance at the Confederations Cup a year earlier, it’s no wonder so many thought the Socceroos were good enough to play on the world stage.
An unforgettable Confederations Cup campaign started with a 2-0 win over Mexico in Suwon – engineered by one of the most unheralded Socceroos of all time, Josip Skoko.
Skoko will forever be remembered for his stupendous volley against Greece in front of more than 95,000 fans at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia’s farewell friendly in 2005.
But the man capped 51 times by the Socceroos was, on his day, one of the finest midfielders Australia has ever produced.
And he made his presence well and truly known at the 2001 Confederations Cup.
He created the first goal in Australia’s opener against Mexico by firing over a penetrating cross for Shaun Murphy to head home at the far post.
And he scored Australia’s second with a rasping left-foot drive that flashed past Oswaldo Sanchez and condemned the shell-shocked Mexicans to a 2-0 defeat.
And Skoko was only just getting started.
With the eyes of the globe on reigning world champions France and in front of more than 44,000 fans at Daegu Stadium, Skoko’s swerving long-range free-kick had debutant Gregory Coupet in all sorts of bother in the French goal.
He managed to push Skoko’s shot onto the post, only for a lurking Clayton Zane to tap home the rebound and send shockwaves throughout world football.
The 1-0 win was a triumph for Farina and marked one of the most famous Socceroos victories of all time – and it also meant the Aussies, who hadn’t conceded a goal up to that point, were practically guaranteed a place in the semi-finals.
A subsequent 1-0 defeat to South Korea in front of a packed Suwon Stadium was followed by a similarly deflating 1-0 loss to tournament co-hosts Japan in Yokohama, as the Samurai Blue booked their place in the final against France.
Perhaps it wasn’t the worst thing for the Socceroos to have missed the final.
Reaching it – only to fail to qualify for the following year’s tournament – would have been doubly cruel.
As it was, the Socceroos faced Brazil in a third-place playoff that still meant plenty to both sides – Brazilian coach Emerson Leao returned home to learn he was no longer in charge of the Selecao. It’s still one of the greatest moments in Australian football history.
That’s because the Socceroos pulled off another huge surprise, winning 1-0 thanks to another goal from Murphy, as the Sheffield United defender crashed home an acrobatic header from Stan Lazaridis’ swirling free-kick.
It was a result that ended Emerson Leao’s tenure as Brazil coach and simultaneously delighted Frank Farina.
“It was a great result, we’ve come up against a Brazilian side which was a good side, to win and come third is fantastic, it will most probably sink in in the next few days,” said Farina after the match.
“I was always confident that we would create chances,” he added.
“I said to the boys at half-time, if we maintained our shape and our discipline as we did in the first half, we would get a chance in the second.”
It’s a chance they certainly took.
Sadly, the Socceroos would go down 3-1 on aggregate to Uruguay in a two-legged playoff for a place among the world’s best in 2002.
It was an opportunity missed. But the lessons learned helped steer the Socceroos to a spot in Germany four years later.
And they knew they had what it takes to mix it with the world’s best thanks in no small part to their performance at the 2001 Confederations Cup.
As we count down the greatest moments in Socceroos history, we want you to tell us what your favourites are. Have your say in the picker below!
Check out the rest of the countdown:
10. Australia’s performances – and Tim Cahill’s goal – in 2014
9. When we almost qualified for USA 94
8. Charlie Yankos’ stunning free-kick against Argentina
7. Beating France and Brazil in 2001
6. England 3, Australia 1: Beating the Poms in their own backyard
5. Knocking Croatia out of Germany in the craziest game in Australian history
4. Australia’s historic 3-1 win over Japan in Kaiserslautern
3. Making our debut on the world stage in 1974
2. Winning the Asian Cup in Australia
1. John Aloisi’s penalty
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