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It was not a match of high distinction, but all the Socceroos needed was a pass against Paraguay, and their 0-0 in San Francisco Bay Area stadium booked a place in the World Cup knock-out rounds for the third time in their history.
A much-changed Australia side controlled large parts of the match, but with both teams knowing that a draw would be enough to qualify for the last 32, there were long stretches without impetus.
For Australian football, it was far from the best advertisement for the game, even as millions watched on TVs, live sites and in bars, with the match lacking the intensity and jeopardy of the Socceroos’ opening two World Cup matches. But Tony Popovic’s team will not mind, as they secured second place in Group D.
Best for the Socceroos were Jordy Bos – playing on the right side of defence – and Lucas Herrington, the young defender on his World Cup debut who was assured for the duration. But in truth the whole team delivered what was a historic achievement on a cool night in Santa Clara to leave 12,000 or more fans in yellow delirious.
The World Cup mission is now back on track. The Socceroos’ struggles against the USA had let slip a golden runway into the knockout stages. The co-hosts finished as group winners and can now reach the quarter-finals with two wins against the likes of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Egypt and South Korea.
Yet the second place secured here offers a platform for progression. The Socceroos can now rest for a week, with their last-32 match in Dallas not for another eight days.
The team will remain in Oakland in their familiar surrounds until Wednesday before flying to Texas. Their opponent is still to be decided, but will be the second-placed team from Group G, which finishes on Friday (Saturday AEST).
Belgium are well-placed to finish second in that group, needing only to beat New Zealand to secure qualification. Their place is also determined by what happens between Egypt and Iran, but Belgium cannot finish top of the group if Egypt win.
Popovic’s reputation as a gambler grew again when the line-ups were announced. Last week there were two shocks in the starting XI, this time there were even more – six in total.
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Nestory Irankunda was in, as were Cristian Volpato and Connor Metcalfe, meaning striker Mohamed Touré made way and Irankunda started centrally, replicating the structure from the second half against the US. The injured Jacob Italiano was replaced by Aziz Behich, and Jordy Bos swapped flanks with Behich to start on the right.
Jackson Irvine replaced Paul Okon-Engstler in the middle, and Herrington also came in at left central defence for Cam Burgess. At 18, Herrington became the youngest Socceroo to start at a World Cup, eclipsing the record set by Irankunda against Turkey.
Herrington started like a man double his age. Within two minutes he had calmly distributed the ball four times under Paraguay pressure, and after 16 minutes even asserted his physicality. He came for a header in midfield, then for the follow-up he easily beat Paraguay’s Diego Gómez to the ball, brushing his forearm against his opponent’s face. The man once described as a baby giraffe was dominating on his World Cup debut, towering over the Paraguayan, who rolled around playing for a free-kick underneath him.
As predicted, Paraguay sat back and allowed Australia to play, handing the Socceroos the bulk of possession. While not getting on the scoreboard in the first half, they found their greatest success down the right with the new look combination of Bos and Volpato.
Both are left footers, and there were times they lacked width – especially when Volpato took one too many touches – but they also engineered the Socceroos’ best chance of the first half. Volpato drew a lunge from a defender on the edge of the area, creating space to tee up Bos, but his shot from 20m out was saved by Paraguay keeper Orlando Gil.
There was also damage down the left, but most of it was done to Metcalfe’s eye. A collision not long after the first-half drinks break saw the midfielder’s brow sliced by an opponent’s boot. The team doctor wiped blood away and Metcalfe replaced his shirt, appearing briefly as Rambo with his black singlet and black headband.
The second half started with several scares, all reminders that Australia – for all their dominance – could have been on the brink of elimination. Irvine was booked early for a challenge on the dangerous Julio Enciso, then on a counter Andrés Cubas hit a powerful long shot Beach was pleased to see find his hands. Hearts were in mouths briefly when Beach and Behich were involved in a back pass mix up, saved by the goalkeeper’s toe as the veteran defender screamed at his young teammate.
With both teams appearing content with a point, however, the forgettable final passages made way for what seemed like an inevitable conclusion. There was one late chance for either side, but Bos sent his shot wide and Beach gathered an injury-time strike. So there it finished: 0-0, job done, and the last 32 awaits.
