Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Aussie escapades are over
And so, what is arguably the greatest achievement in Australian sporting history ends. What a way to go out - a dramatic and controversial penalty moments before the final whistle. And the irony that the unwitting and possibly innocent culprit Lucas Neill, without doubt Australia's player of the tournament, would be the man to ultimately trigger the final act that was to send his team home.
It's been a magnificent trip and to make such a sudden exit, just as Australia were starting to look as though they would score in extra time, is gutting. May 13th springs to mind.
They played quite well, passing the ball confidently (particularly in the first 20 minutes or so) and really just saw the Azzuri at their defensive best. There's not much you can do about that (although having some more width and maybe bringing Kennedy on instead of Aloisi might have helped, but Italy did look very, very strong defensively). The fortifications held, and we had no ideas.
Was it a penalty? I dunno. I thought so, but everyone else seems to think it wasn't. If it was, it was soft. In my mind if you're going to give a penalty in the last 5 seconds of a World Cup match, it's going to have to be a two footed head high Kung Fu kick - you REALLY want to be sure of it. Having said that, it happened quickly enough that I find it hard to blame the referee - to me, it looked like a penalty, even after several replays. I reckon Neill was impeding the player without actually attempting to play the ball. Grosso definitely played for the penalty, as had many of the other Italians throughout the game, but he was still impeded. As Fozzie said, some refs will give it and some won't. What can you do. It wasn't a red card either, and we sure didn't bitch about that.
Well, I hope Johnny Warren is up there watching it on his 500 inch LCD. The Socceroos have done their Captain proud, and they can only build on it.
Player ratings
Schwarzer 7 confidence inspiring.
Chipperfield 6 a bit dodgy defensively and missed two half chances.
Neill 8 his indescretion for the penalty is barely enough to blot his magnificent record.
Moore 7 reliable again.
Culina 6 Some wayward passes and not much imagination.
Wilkshire 7 I groaned when I heard his name called out but he acquitted himself very well with a studious and disciplined game.
Cahill 7 ran around a lot, and a bit unlucky not to score.
Grella 8 defensively superb.
Bresciano 6 just not himself.
Sterjovski 6 couldn't get involved.
Viduka 6 tried too hard
Aloisi 6 ineffective
said...:(
written before the match.
Socceroos show off a beautiful game
Vinnie Venezuela
June 25, 2006
BEING a Diego is hard sometimes, like making the decision to play Kalac over Schwarzer, not giving Skoko a look in and coming to terms with the fact that Guus will not stay forever.
It's hard because so many people are telling the Australian public what the Diegos and world footy fans in Australia have known forever. It's hard because people never supportive of the game are on the bandwagon and it's hard because you just hope that they will stay there and maybe do something more meaningful to help foster the next Tim, Chipp or Harry. Maybe The Footy Show will do a "Search for the next Socceroo" star.
The thing many are realising about the Hiddink Socceroos is the broad nature of their talent. A lot has been said about their fighting spirit, fitness and competitive nature that typifies the Australian attitude in any arena. That's all good, like a second-half Bresciano and Aloisi substitution. We know this squad is talented, some perhaps more so than others. But the beauty of the game and the team rests in their ability to jell as a unit. It is this that has left many gobsmacked by the skill of our game and why the Brazil match revealed some exceptional magic from our part. Frank Lampard, the England midfielder, acknowledged this cohesion as a clear strength.
Hiddink has taken our national team to a level many only theorised about, a level many did not even consider likely. But he has not only shown the squad what is possible. Now, the uninitiated are beginning to understand the subtleties, complexities and totality of the game.
Whereas once soccer may have been foolishly criticised for its lack of scoring, many now understand the difficulty of breaking a tight defence, the importance of keeping your structure and the absolute beauty of a passing game. While we wait for Viduka to open his account, finally we start to see the work he is doing despite not scoring.
The pleasure and pain of the World Cup involves getting up really early to watch dreams being made or shattered. I remember watching Holland cream Italy in 1978. I also remember the awful silence of 92,000 streaming out of the MCG.
As Australia prepares to play Italy, a game that is there to be won, this team as our defender Lucas Neill has stated, "turn the pages of history every day". The fact that I will be staying up to watch Australia play Italy in the World Cup is something that I never dreamed of. How good are we.
Vinnie Venezuela is a member of the Four Diegos, who appear regularly on SEN in the Four Diegos Soccer Show and have the website FourDiegos.com
