Cahill Gets Australia Off To A Flyer In Asian CupIndia 0 Australia 4 (Cahill 11,64 Kewell 24, Holman 45)

Two goals from Tim Cahill saw Australia make a winning start to their 2011 AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011™ campaign with a 4-0 victory over India at Al Sadd Stadium on Monday. 

Harry Kewell and Brett Holman also got on the score-sheet in a Group C encounter that Holger Osieck's side dominated throughout in stark contrast to their Asian Cup debut four years ago, when Cahill's stoppage-time equaliser scraped a 1-1 draw with Oman.

It took Australia just 11 minutes to break the deadlock. Brett Emerton collected the ball in acres of space down the right and advanced into the box unchallenged before his low cross picked out the onrushing Cahill and the Everton forward side-footed home with ease inside the six-yard box.

India looked to reply and NP Pradeep saw a long-range effort easily held by Mark Schwarzer before Climax Lawrence shoot horribly wide when he had time and space on the edge of the box.

Cahill had a header ruled out for offside and Kewell fired straight at keeper Subrata Paul from Holman's lay-off before the Galatasaray midfielder doubled Australia's advantage in the 25th minute with a fine effort.

Picking up Luke Wilkshire's short pass, he turned and took a couple of steps before unleashing a swerving low drive with his left foot form 25 yards that found the far bottom corner beyond a diving Paul.

Cahill then somehow contrived to waste a golden opportunity for his second goal on the half-hour mark when a deflected shot fell into his path three yards out but with just the keeper to beat, his weak poke hit Paul and spun wide.

The India custodian then did well to tip Cahill's dipping 25-yard snap effort over the bar after he had brought down a long diagonal ball on his chest with aplomb before Australia extended their lead in first-half stoppage time when Holman met Emerton's cross ahead of Paul to nod in the third.

A slick Australia move ended with Cahill scuffing a shot wide of the far post nine minutes into the second period and Emerton was also off target as Australia continued to dominate.

Cahill eventually claimed his second and Australia's fourth when he rose highest to meet a free-kick from the right and planted a header into the far corner. Kewell then almost grabbed his second but a curling shot was just the wrong side of the post.

The game petered out after that although Sunil Chettri threatened a late consolation for India but was unable to control a long ball over the top and Schwarzer came out to smother as Bob Houghton's side were soundly beaten


Line Ups:


India: 01-Paul, 05-Anwar, 07-Pradeep, 11-Chhetri, 12-Mandal, 17-S.Singh, 18-Rafi, 19-G.Singh, 20-Lawrence, 22-Nabi, 23-Dias Subs Used: 08-R.Singh, 09-Yadav, 16-Wadoo
Australia: 01-Schwarzer, 02-Neill, 03-Carney, 04-Cahill, 05-Culina, 06-Ognenovski, 07-Emerton, 08-Wilkshire, 10-Kewell, 14-Holman, 15-Jedinak Subs Used: 09-McDonald, 11-Burns, 17-McKay

Australia 2 Serbia 1

Scorers: Cahill (Aus), Holman (Aus), Pantelic (Srb)

Attendance: 38836

Australia got the win they wanted in Nelspruit on Wednesday night, but not the number of goals they needed as the Socceroos were eliminated from Group D on goal difference behind Ghana. Germany, 1-0 winners over the Black Stars in Johannesburg, topped the group on six points, while the Aussies and Ghanaians finished on four and the Serbians three.

Budweiser Man of the Match Tim Cahill was back in the team, after being dismissed in the ultimately decisive 4-0 opening loss to the Germans, and it was the Everton man who scored the crucial opening goal of the match on 69 minutes. Substitute Brett Holman doubled the lead just four minutes later before Marko Pantelic pulled one back late on to set up a grandstand finish.

Both teams approached the encounter at the Mbombela Stadium knowing they needed to win and the game started at a high tempo. Serbia's Milos Krasic was an early danger down their right wing, testing goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer at his near post inside the first five minutes. In the 12th minute, Krasic had an even better chance when sprung free in the box by Milos Ninkovic's defence-splitting pass after an Australia corner, but the CSKA Moscow man took it too wide and could not get his shot on target around the advancing Schwarzer.

Krasic then turned provider, finding Zdravko Kuzmanovic streaking into the area, but he fired well wide when he might have done better in the 16th minute. Another pass from the right in the 23rd minute picked out Branislav Ivanovic, who pulled the ball back well from close range, but Schwarzer reacted quickly to save with his out-stretched left arm. The onslaught against Australia left-back David Carney continued in the 34th minute as Ivanovic crossed to a loosely marked Nikola Zigic, but the Serbia striker did not connect cleanly and the ball slid off his head. Four minutes later, Krasic did have the ball in the back of the Australian net, but he was narrowly offside.

The two best chances of the first half for the Asian Zone representatives fell to Cahill, but the Everton midfielder headed wide just after the half-hour mark and then lost his footing in the 39th minute after Carney had picked him out all alone in the middle of the Serbian box. But Pim Verbeek's side came out with more purpose in the second half and two long-range efforts put a lump in Serbian throats. First, Jason Culina blazed wide from 25 yards after the defence failed to clear a free-kick, and Bresciano then stung the goalkeeper's hands with a blast from just outside the area when given too much space.

And though the Serbians continued to create chances as well, with Zigic firing over from close range and Kuzmanovic heading over from near the penalty spot, it was the Aussies who found the net. Again talisman Cahill was the inspiration, showing more determination to leap over the defence and head in a long cross. As Serbia pushed for the equaliser, Australia produced another moment of brilliance, this time from Holman, who picked the ball up near his halfway line and screamed in a long-range shot low into Vladimir Stojkovic's goal.

With their South Africa 2010 hopes slipping away, the eastern Europeans battled forward and second-half substitute Zoran Tosic was a constant threat. It was his hard shot that was spilled by Schwarzer, and fellow substitute Pantelic was first to the ball for an easy score. Remarkably that meant that the Serbians could have gone through with another goal, but despite some goalmouth opportunities, they did not force a save from Schwarzer, although Culina did have a one-on-one bravely saved by Stojkovic at the other end in the final moments.

Ghana 1 Australia 1

Scorers: Gyan (Gha), Holmann (Aus)

Attendace: 34812

Ghana were held to a 1-1 draw by ten-man Australia at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium, but moved to the top of Group D with four points from two matches. The west Africans could not take advantage of the first-half dismissal of Harry Kewell to claim maximum points, but managed to lift themselves above Serbia and Germany in the section.

Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac was forced to reshuffle his rearguard due to an injury to Isaac Vorsah, with Jonathan Mensah, who had sufficiently recovered from injury, forming a centre-back partnership with Lee Addy. For his part, Australia coach Pim Verbeek made no fewer than four changes to the side that had been overrun 4-0 by Germany. Harry Kewell started in place of the suspended Tim Cahill up front, with left-back David Carney brought in for Scott Chipperfield. In midfield, Richard Garcia and the injured Vince Grella were replaced by Mark Bresciano and Brett Holman respectively.

After some nervy opening exchanges in front of the watching Germany coach Joachim Low, the Socceroos got the first chance of note on 11 minutes and they duly converted it. Mark Bresciano’s powerful free-kick from 30 yards was only parried by Richard Kingson, with the ball falling kindly for the onrushing Brett Holman, who gleefully fired in the first goal of the tournament for the Aussies.

Ghana struggled for fluency early on and they had to wait a further ten minutes for their first serious attempt on goal, with Andre Ayew’s shot from the edge of the area stopped only by a crucial Lucas Neil interception. However, the Black Stars soon restored parity in a moment that proved a hammer blow to Australia's hopes. Asamoah Gyan equalised from the spot after Kewell was adjudged to have stopped Mensah’s shot with his right arm – the Socceroos No10 earning a red card on his long-awaited return after injury. Prince Tagoe then had a chance to put his side into a lead minutes later, but he drilled the ball well wide of the left post.

Ghana surged forward in search of their second goal with half-time approaching, and Kevin-Prince Boateng’s shot from the right side of the area only narrowly failed to find the mark, Mark Schwarzer making a fingertip save. The Black Stars began the second half where they left off in the first, with Kwadwo Asamoah and Gyan trying their luck from distance.

Fleet-footed forward Quincy Owusu-Abeyie was brought on for Tagoe just before the hour, but the Ghanaians could not find a breakthrough against a resilient Australia defence. For their part, Australia called on Joshua Kennedy in an attempt to take control in the air and they had chances to win the match. Substitute Chipperfield headed over from a Luke Wilkshire cross and Wilkshire himself spurned a glorious opportunity after 72 minutes, shooting straight at Kingson. The Wigan Athletic goalkeeper then did well to stop a volley from Kennedy.

Despite their numerical disadvantage, Australia kept on attacking and Verbeek also sent on striker Nikita Rukavytsya for Wilkshire. At the opposite end, though, the Black Stars might have scored a late winner but Mensah’s header went just wide of the right post and Owusu-Abeyie’s curling shot was tipped over by Schwarzer.