Unfortunately for Iraq, their opponent last Tuesday had a knack for
making late, match-breaking goals.
Josh Kennedy from The Land Down Under kicked past goalkeeper Noor Sabri
at the 83rd minute mark to defeat Iraq 1-0 and qualify Australia for
its third consecutive World Cup.
Kennedy was a last-minute substitute for veteran Tim Cahill. This move
courtesy of Coach Holger Osieck paid off, as the 30-year-old striker teamed up
with Mark Bresciano to make that winning goal.
It’s a surprising result, considering how the Australians fared against
the Iraqis throughout the game. Mark Schwarzer struggled to contain the young
and energetic lineup of Iraq; conversely, Brett Holman and Robbie Kruse had a
hard time getting past their opponent’s defense. There was also the bad weather
hampering the performance of both teams. Australia also fared badly in the
Asian qualifying rounds, with only one out of their first six matches won.
Luckily, the psychological boost provided by the home court and the
80,000-strong fans, combined with the experience of the Socceroos, ensured that
Australia will see Brazil this year.
“I’m proud of everybody,” said captain Lucas Neill. “It’s been a really
tough campaign. We’ve stuck at it, showed mental strength. Sorry, it wasn’t
pretty. But we’ve beaten what was in front of us and pushed ourselves on to a
very exciting tournament.”
Australia now ranks second in their AFC group behind Japan.
Photo credit: Camw (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
