AUSTRALIA’S FIRST WORLD CUP MATCH WIN IN 12 YEARS
AUSTRALIA’S FIRST WORLD CUP MATCH WIN IN 12 YEARS
By Rashmi Goel
In Group D, Australia won 1-0 against Tunisia after a heroic defensive performance. It has been a long 12-year wait for another World Cup win for Australia. With Denmark to come in the last round of fixtures, Mitchell Duke's header keeps their qualification hopes alive. Getting here has been a long and challenging journey. After defeating Serbia 2-1 in 2010, the Socceroos have lost six matches and drawn one, but now they can celebrate another victory on the world stage. As Graham Arnold's men cruised to a milestone victory, Harry Souttar and Aaron Mooy were outstanding. A delightful header by Mitchell Duke proved his worth after the France defeat. Craig Goodwin deflected the ball from the left, and Duke flicked it into the far corner to send the Australian crowd wild.
As Graham Arnold said prior to this match, Australia needed to fight like boxing kangaroos. The team delivered as they took on Tunisia for most of the first half. It was a tough match for the Socceroos, and with Tim Cahill watching from the stands, they managed to land several key blows on their opponents. Their attack was promising, however, it was their desire to defend that pleased Arnold the most. This was typified just before the break when Harry Souttar was able to maintain Australia's lead by blocking Mohamed Drager's close-range shot with an outstanding block.
As he steered the ball away from danger, the Stoke defender put everything on the line to deny an almost certain goal. It was a comical moment when Ellyes Skhiri was tripped up by the referee, but as the faces of those in attendance attested, this was far from a laughing matter. After the hour mark, Tunisia's number ten and World Cup goalscorer, Wahbi Kazri, was introduced. The Australians had the chance to extend their lead when Mathew Leckie almost converted a low cross by Jamie Maclaren. This goal seemed to be more of a demonstration of the acrobatic skills of Leckie, whose kick was inches away from being converted. It was reminiscent of Paul Gascoigne's desperate lunge in the semi-final of the Euro '96 tournament.
This was a perfect team performance from Australia, as Souttar continued to dominate at the back. This Australian defense held firm despite few shots on goal. An attempt was made by Montassar Talbi to score from a long distance with a well-struck volley, but Tunisia appeared to have been able to score after a defensive error appeared to open the scoring. Souttar however raced across and made a superb challenge, before getting in the way of a second attempt. In November, he returned to first-team football with Stoke after a year out due to an ACL injury, but here he was making his mark on the biggest stage. As he recovered from the injury, all he could think about was this tournament, having sustained the injury while playing for his country against Saudi Arabia.
It is important to have goals when you are injured in order to maintain motivation," he stated back in February. Having the opportunity to play in a World Cup would be incredible." He was incredible, as was Aaron Mooy in midfield as Australia held on to a crucial three points that kept their hopes of progression alive. Their next opponent is Denmark, a team with excellent team spirit as evidenced by full-time. After a season-ending ACL injury, Martin Boyle was brought into the huddle by his manager, as Arnold gave a passionate speech to the team. As impressive as this victory is, the team still has the opportunity to make more history against Denmark.
