After years of heroic failure and near-misses, Australia are now just one point away from qualifying for consecutive FIFA World Cups™ for the first time. A draw tomorrow in Qatar is all that Australia require to reach South Africa 2010 and, should Japan fail to claim maximum points in Uzbekistan earlier in the evening, the Socceroos will become the first nation to qualify.
It is all a far cry from four years ago, when Australian fans sat through an excruciating two-legged play-off against Uruguay, culminating in the drama of a penalty shoot-out to reach Germany 2006, their first FIFA World Cup since 1974. Indeed, since their maiden attempt to reach the world's greatest football stage in 1965, Australia have been one match away from FIFA World Cup qualification on six occasions only to fall at the last hurdle.
This time around, coach Pim Verbeek has guided the team to a considerably more comfortable position, one which could see the Socceroos qualify with two matches in hand. The basis of their success has been at the back, where goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer has yet to see his goal penetrated in the five group matches to date, setting a national FIFA World Cup record in the process.
Full focus
The match between Australia and Qatar in Doha seems a lopsided contest on paper, with the Socceroos at near-full strength and the hosts missing a number of influential players. The Socceroos have spent the past week in Dubai preparing and trying to acclimatise to the heat and humidity in the Gulf. The only major names missing from the Australian squad are long-term absentees Mark Viduka and Brett Emerton, while defender Luke Wilkshire is unavailable due to suspension.
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