Proud Aussies refuse to yield

THE most pulsating, dramatic, heart-stopping contest of a thrilling World Cup ended with Australia booking a last-16 meeting with Italy. Harry Kewell’s 79th-minute angled drive sent the Socceroos bouncing into the knockout phase for the first time in their history.

Yet the mere scoreline does not even start to get close to explaining the story behind a truly extraordinary game which Australia ended with 10 men and Croatia nine. Twice Australia were forced to come from behind to grab the precious point they so desperately required after conceding initially in the second minute, then at the start of the second period following a mistake to rank up with any the competition had ever seen from keeper Zeljko Kalac.

Yet, showing the same pugnacious spirit which has seen them become champion at so many sports, Australia refused to lie down.

Craig Moore pulled them level just before half-time when he kept his nerve to fire home from the spot, then, after Australia had another clear spot-kick appeal turned down by referee Graham Poll, Kewell drove home the goal which blasted open the door to the second round.

Nobody celebrated the draw more enthusiastically than Australian coach Guus Hiddink, who had almost seen the biggest gamble of his entire coaching career go disastrously wrong.

Hiddink stunned the Aussie support by bringing back Kalac, who spends his winters sat on the AC Milan bench, ahead of the established Mark Schwarzer.

Kalac had barely touched the ball when he was picking it out of his own net, a legacy of Mark Viduka’s third-minute foul on Croatian captain Niko Kovac.

Up stepped Darijo Srna to stroke a 25-yard free-kick into the top corner.

For half an hour thereafter, Australia battered the Croatian defence.

Australia were just starting to run out of ideas when Stjepan Tomas stuck up a fist to deflect away a Brett Emerton cross.

Poll spotted the infringement and though the gap between the Premiership official blowing his whistle and Moore stepping up to take the keep seemed to last forever, the Newcastle man kept his cool to fire home.

Then came Kalac’s abberation. Getting right behind a seemingly innocuous Kovac strike, the keeper somehow managed to let the ball slip through his grasp and into the net.

But the goal that would not come eventually did. Marco Bresciano floating over the right-wing cross which John Aloisi flicked into Kewell’s path.

Kewell controlled with the chest, finish on the volley. Easy as that.

CROATIA: Pletikosa, Simic, Tudor, Tomas (Klasnic 84), Simunic, Srna, Nico Kovac, Babic, Kranjcar (Jerko Leko 65), Prso, Olic (Modric 73).

AUSTRALIA: Kalac, Neill, Moore, Chipperfield (Kennedy 75), Emerton, Grella (Aloisi 63), Culina, Cahill, Sterjovski (Bresciano 71), Kewell, Viduka.

Referee: Graham Poll (England).