A goalkeeper in the Australian A-league has had a nine-month suspension for manhandling a referee reduced to six months AND split into two to allow him to play at the Beijing Olympics in August.
Now that's an appeal!
Danny Vukovic is a goalkeeper with 2007/2008 A-league grand finalists Central Coast Mariners and it was in that grand final match against Newcastle Jets when the young goalie lost his cool in the dying minutes and literally slapped the hand of referee Mark Shields.
What a let-off for Danny boy
His frustration stemmed from the referee's decision not to award his side a last gasp penalty and was subsequently sent off with a straight red-card. His offence was serious despite causing the referee little arm - it was nothing more than a slap on the hand at best - but the fact that he manhandled the ref did not go amiss with the FFA which gave him a 15-month ban of which six months of it suspended on a probationary basis and only activated if the player re-offends within a year of returning, meaning Vukovic would miss nine months of A-League action and the chance of representing Australia at the 2008 Beijing Olympics (read more about this incident here)
However, an independent committee ruled on Wednesday that his suspension be further reduced meaning the player is free to resume playing in the A-League competition again on October 6 but more importantly, he is now eligible for selection to the Australian Olympic team.
If football wishes to avoid becoming the laughing stock - it actually already is with this decision - of the football codes in Australia then it needs some credibility. It's incredible that a player can he suspended until June - then be allowed to play in the Olympics - and then go back to being suspended until October!
Vukovic was fined $10,000 for his strike but nevertheless, people will say the chance of representing Australia at the Olympic games is priceless.
Australian goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer secured a draw for the Socceroos in their World Cup qualifier with China overnight by saving an 88th-minute penalty which he conceded!
The Middlesbrough goalie hesitated as he came off his line to clear a hopeful ball from Sun Xiang, and by the time he went in to make a challenge on striker Qu Bo, his timing was out thus knocking down the substitute and a spot kick was awarded by referee Mohamed Al Saeedi.
However, China's penalty taker Shao Jiayi could only shoot straight at Schwarzer who managed to make a save with his legs despite diving to his left.
The visitors performed admirably given the circumstances of missing up to as many as 7 players including skipper Harry Kewell in the lead-up to the game and things got even worse when striker Archie Thompson was forced off due to an early injury.
Given the eventful build-up to the game, it is likely Australian coach Pim Verbeek would have been happy with a draw against dangerous opponents and he was rewarded with a gutsy performance by the Socceroos in Kunming - a priceless result and precious point gained which could go a long way in securing qualification for the World Cup in 2010.
Skipper for the night, West Ham's Lucas Neill was also full of praise for his team and was clearly impressed by the character of those who have stepped up into the side in place of the more senior and experienced players.
Australia will be without their injury-plagued captain Harry Kewell for the World Cup qualifier against China in just a few hours time (kick-off 5pm AEDT 26/3).
The out of favour Liverpool winger had to pull out of the match through injury - a tight groin - most like suffered during Saturday's friendly against Singapore. From the Socceroos training camp in Kunming, coach Pim Verbeek made the decision not to risk the star midfielder this morning after he failed to complete last night's closed training session.
This is a huge blow to Australia's chances of securing an away win against China who will be roared on by a partisan home crowd. Already without the likes of Everton midfielder Tim Cahill, Newcastle United striker Mark Viduka, Josh Kennedy, Mile Sterjovski and Scott McDonald, the loss of a player of Kewell's stature and experience could prove costly.
However, not everything is going China's way with the home side experiencing some injury problems of their own with Manchester United's Dong Fangzhou and striker Shi Jun ruled out while winger Shao Jiayi and utility Sun Jihai are both returning from injury.
Should Australia beat the Chinese, they will open up a five-point buffer between them and their most dangerous opponents in Group 1.
Socceroo head coach Pim Verbeek has named a strong 21-man squad to face China in the all-important 2010 World Cup qualifying game against in Kunming on Wednesday night.
Despite the late withdrawals of Tim Cahill and Mile Sterjovski due to injury, the likes of Michael Beauchamp, Mark Bresciano, David Carney, Jason Culina, Vince Grella, Brett Holman, Harry Kewell, Patrick Kisnorbo, Scott McDonald, Lucas Neill, Mark Schwarzer, Carl Valeri and Luke Wilkshire will be present in the squad.
These overseas-based players will be joined by eight players from the A-League and they are: Mark Bridge (Sydney FC), Ante Covic, Adam Griffiths, & Jade North (all Newcastle Jets), Bruce Djite (Adelaide United), Archie Thompson (Melbourne Victory) and Nikolai Topor-Stanley (Perth Glory).
All of the eight home-based players featured in Australia's nil-all draw with Singapore over the weekend and did well enough to warrant their inclusion in the squad. The Socceroos currently top Group 1 with 3 points from one game played.
The Central Coast Mariners are reportedly at an advanced stage of negotiations to bring back former Manchester United and Sydney FC striker Dwight Yorke to Australian football.
According to some sources, the club's new marquee signing could be captured possibly within days on what is rumoured to be a minimum two-year deal. He will replace Socceroo John Aloisi who has signed for Sydney FC.
Dwight Yorke during his days at Sydney FC
It is believed Yorke's manager Simon Bayliff contacted Sydney FC last week, but the club were already in advanced negotiations with Aloisi, whom they signed on a $1 million-plus package.
The Mariners' move for Yorke would reunite him with majority shareholder Peter Turnbull, originally an investor with Sydney FC.
Yorke's mooted wages are believed to be less than his $1 million Sydney FC package in season I, when he skippered them to the A-League title - against the Mariners.
The Trinidad and Tobago attacker, who has always stated a desire to return to the A-League and pursue coaching, would likely live in Sydney.
Yorke, 36, scored seven goals in 22 matches for Sydney FC during the inaugural A-League season before returning to the UK with Premier League side Sunderland FC. It remains to be seen whether Yorke would want to return to Australia to play for a club other than Sydney. His manager at Sunderland, former Man Utd teammate Roy Keane, is keen to keep hold of the striker as evident by the striker's absence from the transfer list during the recent January transfer window.
Inaugural A-League champions Sydney FC has completed the marquee signing of John Aloisi from the Central Coast Mariners in a deal reported to be worth $1.4 million a season.
The Socceroos star has signed a two-year deal with the A-League glamour club and admitted that the Sydney side provided him with the spotlight and attention that he craved as a footballer.
The ex-Coventry City (EPL) striker said that: "Going back a couple of months ago I watched Sydney play against LA Galaxy and saw 83,000 people and I thought to myself I want to be part of something big like that.
"(I) also watched Sydney against Melbourne - the last league game of the season - (and) they got 33 or 35,000.
"They're massive crowds and as a footballer you want to be play in front of big crowds, you want to win things and I'm no different.
"I've still got ambitions, goals.
"I enjoyed my time at the Mariners - I'm glad they brought me back to Australia - and now this is another challenge for me.
"This was the right move for me."
Since turning professional in 1991, Aloisi has been quite the journeyman in a career that has taken him to Holland, Spain, Italy and England - Sydney FC is his 10th club in an illustrious career - before returning to Australia with the Central Coast in 2007. He has been capped 55 times by Australia and scored 27 goals including the winning penalty that took the Socceroos to the 2006 World Cup.
Aloisi wheels away after scoring THAT penalty
Also joining Aloisi at Sydney FC next season is 22 year-old Mark Bridge from reigning champions Newcastle Jets and 29 year-old Simon Colosimo from Perth Glory.
Sydney coach John Kosmina and chairman Andrew Kemeny were suitably delighted at the player unveiling and said that they were trying to develop a culture of success at the club and that starts by signing players of the highest quality.
Central Coast Mariners goalkeeper Danny Vukovic has been banned for 15 months - or effectively two-thirds of the next A-League season - for slapping referee Mark Shield in the dying minutes of the 2007-08 A-League grand final loss to Newcastle Jets on February 24, 2008.
Vukovic was found guilty of violent conduct after he appeared to slap Shield's hand in the final minute of the match when the Mariners were denied a last-gasp penalty. He was red-carded.
The 15-month ban of which six months of it suspended on a probationary basis and only activated if the player re-offends within a year of returning, means Vukovic will most likely miss nine months of A-League action. He is also most likely to miss the chance of representing Australia at the 2008 Beijing Olympics depending on whether the Football Federation of Australia (FFA) chooses to extend the ban to international matches.
Although the 15-month ban may sound harsh for a slap on the hand, the seriousness of the issue is that the player could have faced a potential life ban for the incident.
Vukovic has a week to appeal the decision but things are not looking too bright from him. At most, he will only be successful in reducing the ban by a month or two at best. The FFA will be weary of backing down from the 15-month ban for it may set a precedence for future incidents of a similar nature.
The Newcastle Jets has won the 2008 A-League championship after a 1-0 win over the Central Coast Mariners at the Sydney Football Stadium.
The Jets took out the decider in front of a huge 36,354 crowd after Mark Bridge, capitalising on an uncharacteristic error from the experienced Vidmar, drilled home the only goal of the match in the 64th minute.
However, the game was marred by controversy after the Mariners had seemingly won a penalty to level the score-line in the dying minutes of the game. Referee Mark Shield waved away the strong penalty claim as James Holland appeared to flick the ball away with his elbow but it was Central Coast goalkeeper Danny Vukovic who ended up getting red-carded for berating the ref for the non-decision.
Retiring former Socceroos Tony Vidmar will have to live with his costly mistake after being dispossessed by Mark Bridge near the half-way line before going onto score the only goal of the game.
The veteran Central Coast defender said: "A mistake from myself has cost us the game and I'm going to have to live with that.
"I'll put my hand up.
"There weren't too many clear-cut chances (and it was) a defining moment in the game.
"I saw 'Bridgey' coming from the corner of my left eye and I thought he was going to come inside me so I've gone to leave it and it's got stuck between my feet."
Meanwhile, Joe Marston Medal winner Andrew Durante hailed winning the grand final to be the greatest moment of his injury-plagued career. Not only did he play a huge part in bringing the first ever national football title to Newcastle, he was also voted the best player on the day with a superb display.
"I knew that if we won it, it would be an unbelievable feeling. But this is bigger and better than anyone could have expected. And then to get the Joe Marston on top of that is just the greatest thing I could ever think of," he said.
The Newcastle Jets are through to the A-league grand final after beating Queensland Roar 3-2 in a hard fought preliminary final marred by controversy.
Matt Thompson opened the scoring for the Jets in the 40th minute and were just minutes away from a defiant 1-0 win until a dubious decision by referee turned the game on its head when he awarded Queensland a penalty in injury time for a foul on Simon Lynch.
Up stepped Roar’s Brazilian striker Reinaldo to score from the spot to send the match into extra-time.
Of the two sides, it was Newcastle who started extra time brightly despite the harsh decision that went against them moments earlier and in the 104th minute, they received a penalty of their own when Korean midfielder Song was fouled in the box and Joel Griffiths converting the spot-kick.
Buoyed by taking the lead once again, the Jets continued to press and were rewarded with a third goal in the 110th minute after penalty scorer Griffiths had setup Tarek Elrich to unleash an unstoppable shot from 12 yards out. However, there was still plenty of drama and goalmouth action left in the enthralling contest when Roar skipper Craig Moore received a red-card after a challenge on Mark Bridge.
Despite going a man down, Queensland were awarded a second penalty when Zullo was fouled by Elrich and Reinaldo added a second goal from the spot which ultimately proved not enough as the Jets held on for a deserving win and booked themselves a place in the grand final against Central Coast Mariners at the Sydney Football Stadium on February 24, 2008.
Central Coast Mariner's marquee player Tony Vidmar has confirmed he will be hanging up his boots after the A-league Grand Final on February 24.
The 37-year-old has said that his aging body could no longer stand-up to the rigours of full-time football having had to rely on pain killers to get through much of his second season with the Mariners.
Speaking to the press, Vidmar said: "I've been playing with a lot of pain.
"I've had back trouble and there were times where I always had to take pain killers before games and that's gone through the whole season.
"Funny enough, it's worn off the last few months and it's been a lot better, in that way my body has improved but there is no way that I can continue on and have a long pre-season and even longer season.
"It was a difficult decision. Every day I would say yes, and then the next day I would say no, not to continue.
"I think after we won the minor premiership, the challenge of the Asian Champions League for next year, I thought maybe I could do that.
"But several days after that, definitely after the first leg of the Newcastle game, I think that's when my mind was made up."
The former Rangers and Socceroos defender has had a distinguished career at club and international level, most notably with the Scottish giants Rangers where he played over 100 club games and won the Scottish Championship and League Cup twice and the Scottish FA Cup three times.
Vidmar was inconsolable after the playoff loss in 2001
At international level, Vidmar was a mainstay in the Socceroos defence for many years and sits proudly at number three on the most-capped player's list with 76. His most enduring image in the green and gold remains his tearful exit in Uruguay following Australia's failed World Cup qualification bid in 2001. He later gained revenge by helping Australia qualify for the 2006 World Cup in a playoff against the same side in 2005.
Sadly, his dream of playing at the World Cup finals never materialised due to an irregular heart rhythm which led to his own withdrawal from Guus Hiddink's squad. Following surgery to correct the irregularity, he was given the green light to resume his playing career. Vidmar announced his international retirement after the friendly fixture against Paraguay in October 2006.
The Socceroos legend will take a well deserved holiday after the A-league 2008 grand final before deciding on his future which looks likely to include football in either a coaching or media capacity.
Thanks for the memories and happy retirement mate!
The Sydney Football Stadium (SFS), which has a capacity of 45,500, will play host to the A-League grand final on February 24 with kick-off at 5pm EDT.
The venue hosted the inaugural A-League grand final between Sydney FC and Central Coast Mariners in 2006 and was chosen once again the marquee game of the season due to its significant capacity advantage over contenders Bluetongue Stadium (20,000) and EnergyAustralia Stadium (26,000).
It is the first time the A-League grand final has not been played at the home ground of the first team to qualify for the showcase event, in this case, the Central Coast Mariners who have already booked a place in the showpiece final courtesy of a 3-2 aggregate win over Newcastle Jets in the major semi-final on February 10.
The second grand final spot is still up for grabs with the Newcastle Jets and Queensland Roar set to face-off in the preliminary final this Sunday (Feb. 17).
The Pim Verbeek era of the Socceroos got off to a flying start with a relatively comfortable 3-0 win over Qatar in the opening game of the 2010 World Cup qualifiers at the Telstra Dome overnight.
In front of a buoyant crowd of 50,969 spectators, the home side gave their new boss a dream start in the managerial hot-seat by going all-out in the first half to register three goals on the scoreboard before the half-time break.
Josh Kennedy of German Bundesliga side Karlsruhe opened the scoring for the Socceroos in the 10th minute and soon after, the home side's advantage was doubled through Everton hero Tim Cahill (18th minute). Just after the half hour mark, another one of the Socceroos' european-based players, Palermo's Mark Bresciano got in on the act to complete the scoring.
The Socceroos understandably took the foot off the pedal in the second half but missed some great opportunities to add further goals to the scoreline - something they must grasp against stronger opponents.
However, this was not to detract from the performance of Australia which was fantastic given how little time Verbeek had to prepare his team for this qualifier - most european-based players had flown into Melbourne just 48 hours earlier.
Australia now tops Group A with a maximum 3 points, while China and Iraq are on 1 point each after their 1-1 draw; Qatar are on bottom of the table with 0 points.
The Socceroos' next game is against China on March 26.
The inaugural A-League champions Sydney FC has signed Simon Colosimo from Perth Glory for the 2008/09 season on a two-year deal.
The former Manchester City player is delighted to be joining one of the competition's glamour clubs and is well aware of the spotlight that he will be under from now on.
“I’m thrilled to be joining Sydney FC,” Colosimo said. “They are a big club and I am looking forward to the extra pressure and expectation that goes with playing for Sydney FC.
“I enjoyed my time at Perth but I’m now looking forward to the challenge of establishing myself in the Sydney team and helping them stay at the top of the A-League.”
The central midfielder made his Socceroo debut in 1998 and has played a total of 24 internationals, scoring three goals in the process. He was also a member of the Australian team at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
Sydney FC CEO George Perry was equally delighted with the capture of Colosimo.
“Simon is a quality player and will make a great addition to our squad for the next two years and we are committed to giving the Sydney FC fans a strong side and Simon’s arrival is the start of our recruiting for 2008/09.”
Reports from the UK have said that Socceroo Mile Sterjovski is close to joining English Premier League strugglers Derby County in the next few days.
The 28 year-old from Wollongong current plays for Turkish Super Lig outfit Genclerbirligi Oftasspor and has been targeted by Rams boss Paul Jewell to play out wide or up front for the club as they look to avoid relegation from the Premier League.
"He's a wide player who can play up front as well and former Australia boss Guus Hiddink rates him highly."
said Paul Jewell.
Sterjovski made his name while playing with former clubs Parramatta Power, Sydney United and Wollongong Wolves in Australia and made his international debut against Scotland in 2000.
He was selected by former Socceroos coach Guus Hiddink to be part of Australia's successful 2006 World Cup campaign and started in the games against Brazil and Croatia.
Dutchman Pim Verbeek has been named the new Head Coach of the Socceroos through to the end of the 2010 FIFA World Cup campaign by Football Federation Australia.
But what do we know about the man in charge of leading the Socceroos to South Africa in around two and a half year's time?
Not a lot. And neither does Socceroos and West Ham defender Lucas Neill, apparently.
“I only know him from googling.
“Truthfully it surprised me, it surprised me the fact that we were bandying about Jurgen Klinsmann, Gerard Houllier and Pim Verbeek never came into the equation.
“When it was announced last night and I got the message it was like not a bad surprise, oh we have got him.”
Badoom-Touche!
He recovers by saying that he had heard previous coach Guus Hiddink speak of Verbeek highly and that his vast experience in Asian football should be vital in leading Australia to the World Cup finals in 2010.
Huh? VerbEEEEEEEEEEEK?
“I know stories from the time we were together during the World Cup when (coach) Guus (Hiddink) spoke of him and he spoke highly of him.
“He is experienced in Asia and he got South Korea third in the Asia Cup and let’s face it we failed (at the Asia Cup).
“What he is going to bring is an experience in Asia and how to win games in Asia.
“When we get to the World Cup it is a world thing but at the moment we just have to focus on getting through Asia and maybe he is the best man for the job in Asia.”
According to Wikipedia, Verbeek is 51 (March 12, 1956) and has been mostly managing Dutch football clubs since 1981. He was the assistant coach of South Korea at the 2002 and 2006 World Cup and was promoted to head coach for the 2007 AFC Asian Cup. He led Korea to a third-place finish thus guaranteeing them an automatic berth in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup tournament.
Now that we have this new little Pim Verbeek fact-file on Soccer.org.au, perhaps the other Socceroo members can learn more about their new head coach from Orbling?
For those of you that have been living under a rock, full-time celebrity and some-time footballer David Beckham has been in Australia for the past week in preparation for the exhibition match between his club side LA Galaxy and A-League's Sydney FC.
The match took place last night at the Telstra Stadium in front of a packed house of 80,295 spectators all there to see one thing: Beckham magic.
And the former England captain duly delivered in the first-half stoppage time when he curled home a trademark free-kick. Although unable to prevent his team from succumbing to a 5-3 defeat by the home side, his fans were happy to see their idol deliver some magic on Australian soil.
Sydney FC has today confirmed the signing of Brazilian World Cup winner Juninho as their marquee player for the 2007-08 A-League season.
The Brazilian playmaker was presented at a press conference at Sydney Football Stadium today and put pen to paper on a one-year deal reportedly worth $1 million.
Juninho will wear the No. 22 shirt at Sydney FC
Sydney FC chief executive officer George Perry says that Juninho, as the first FIFA World Cup winner to ink a season-long deal with a Hyundai A-League club, is the competition’s biggest-ever signing.
"Juninho is a true superstar of the world game, a household name to football fans around the globe," said Perry. "We're thrilled to welcome him aboard and can't wait to see him run out in a Sydney FC shirt."
Sydney FC coach Branko Culina is licking his lips at the prospect of working with Juninho, who has starred for Sao Paulo, Middlesbrough, Atletico Madrid, Vasco da Gama, Flamengo, Celtic and Palmeiras.
"As a World Cup winner, Juninho brings a wealth of experience at the highest possible level to Sydney FC," said Culina. "It's not often that you get to work with someone of his phenomenal footballing ability.
"Not only is Juninho's signing great news for Sydney FC but also for Australian football in general. It demonstrates how the far the game has come in this country over the past few years," Culina added.
Juninho told reporters he chose Sydney FC because of the club and manager's tremendous interest "and that make me make my head up to sign with them."
"I'm delighted to join Sydney FC and hope me and my new teammates can bring the A-League Championship back to the city," he said.
According to the latest reports, inaugural A-League champions Sydney FC is set to sign Brazilian ace Juninho Paulista as their marque player for the 2007-08 A-League season.
The pint-sized playmaker has been somewhat of a journeyman throughout his career with stints at Brazilian clubs (São Paulo FC, Vasco da Gama, Palmeiras and CR Flamengo), as well as English club Middlesbrough, Spanish club Atlético Madrid, and Celtic F.C. in Scotland.
He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players to have played for Middlesbrough in the modern era, enjoying three stints at the English club between 1995-1997, 1999 (on loan) and 2002-2004.
Juninho in action for Brasil
His first stint at the club was a huge success for Middlesbrough and the Premiership as a whole where he delighted fans with his creativity, pace and personality. It was during his third spell at the club (2002-2004) where he tasted success with Boro's League cup win of 2004.
The crowning moment in his footballing career would have to be Brazil's World Cup win in 2002 of which he was an integral member, playing 5 of the 7 matches in the tournament including a substitute role in the final against Germany.
Should Juninho join Sydney FC, it will end the glamour club's search for a marque player since the departure of former Manchester United star Dwight Yorke to newly-promoted English Premier League side Sunderland nine months ago.
On Saturday night as the football supporters around Australia were gathered around their televisions to watch the game in Hanoi between last years world cup finalist and rivals Japan on Fox, or maybe just waiting for the updated scores to come through on the internet, saw Japan victorious in a penalty shoot out winning 4-3 after both teams were locked at one all after full time.
While that was happening a manager sat on the side lines knowing that Football Australia was searching for a high profile manager, expectably from Europe to lead the team to world cup 2010.
Arnold is reportably going to revert to coaching the under 23's as well as being the assistant coach to the appointed manager when found.
Arnold should feel hard done by, by his team of premiership stars who under estimated theier Asian Cup opponents. Even Mark Bresciano reporting to Fox came out annd said "preparation wasn't the best, that is why we shruggled for the first two games" and later said "next timewe will take it more seriously".
Why the Australian team took the Asian cup lightly for the first time in the competition is another thing. But, with many teams these days you will often get big ego's and big heads thinking they will cruise through the competition, the team will relax, wont take the games seriously, and they just wont have their mind in the game. Just like recent sporting match ups the 2006/07 one day cricket finals, the England side had a bad series including disastrous test series, just making the finals, and beat the Aussies 2-0 claiming the trophy, and again back in 2002 in a international football friendly at Upton park, England were huge favourites to win the match that saw Australia goal winners and Sven Goran Erikkson wore the brunt of the loss.
Arnold who was also assistant coach to Guus Hiddink during the world cup in Germany that could have seen the team march into the semi's, was rewarded with the top job for the Asian cup.
The Australian team formed together almost straight after the European season, they had training camps as well as friendlies before leaving for Singapore for another friendly before the Asian cup opening had plenty of time to gel, and they were in the same position as all the other Asian teams. Instead they found themselves worrying about should we play or shouldn't we play in Jakarta, in the final because of terrorism threats, instead of focusing on the games ahead. Just look at England, unfortunately, that country is used to terrorism attacks going back to the former IRA attacks, does it affect them. If it does, they don't show it.
Whether or not Football Australia pulls off a major coup in getting the former Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier down under to lead the team to world cup 2010 is to be seen. But one thing has to happen, the big names have to step up, lose their ego's and play as a team, not for themselves if Australia is going to be seen as a force for future Asian or World Cups.
Mark Schwarzer and Lucas Neill console one another after losing 4-3 in a penalty shoot-out against Japan
Soon to be ex-Socceroos coach (if certain rumours are to be believed) Graham Arnold's bold prediction that Australia could win the Asian cup in its first attempt badly backfired when Australia were dumped out of the competition by three-time winners Japan.
Despite taking the lead through John Aloisi's strike in the 70th-minute lead with a close-range finish from Harry Kewell's inviting corner, Japan's Naohiro Takahara quickly levelled just minutes later.
Soon after, Vince Grella was harshly sent off with 14 minutes remaining but the Aussies hung on to send the match into penalties.
Kewell and Lucas Neill both saw their spot kicks saved by Japan goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi and despite Tim Cahill, Nicky Carle and David Carney all converting, veteran Japan defender Yuji Nakazawa stepped up to seal the 4-3 victory.
Despite being cruelly knocked out of the competition by penalties, the Socceroos had very little to cheer about in their debut Asian Cup apart from the 4-0 victory over Thailand.
A shocking draw with Oman followed by a humiliating loss to Iraq set the tone for the entire tournament which saw an underpar record of just one win, one draw and two losses in four matches.
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