Australia NewsUruguay Beats Oz In Shoot-Out |
THE Young Socceroos were beaten 4-3 by Uruguay in a penalty shoot-out after their opening match of the Copa Ciudad de Rosario tournament in Argentina ended in a goalless draw.
The two sides could not be separated during the 90 minutes so the match went straight to a penalty shoot-out.
Sadly, there was to be no repeat of that dramatic night in Sydney when the Socceroos qualified for the 2006 World Cup.
This time it was Uruguay who were spot-on, eventually winning the shoot-out 4-3.
With two Sydney FC players, Antony Golec and Chris Payne, making their international debuts and a new combination of players in the line-up, the Young Socceroos began the match in a cautious manner.
In an evenly balanced first half, the best opportunity for the Young Socceroos came just after the half hour mark when a Uruguayan error in midfield resulted in a turnover in possession. Jason Hoffman was set-up with a one-on-one opportunity with the Uruguayan goalkeeper, but unfortunately his shot went over the crossbar.
The early part of the second half was played out in similar fashion and the Young Socceroos had another great chance to take the lead in the 53rd minute when a cross from Jason Hoffman rebounded off the Uruguay keeper. The ball was pushed out to the top of the box whereupon Kofi Danning unleashed a stinging shot that struck the left post and came back into play but out of danger.
The Young Socceroos dominated for the remainder of the match, but were unable to find the back of the net.
With the score line locked at 0-0 at the end of regulation time, the match went straight to a penalty shoot-out.
Jason Hoffman, Aaron Mooy and Chris Payne converted their shots, but Nathan Elasi and Peter Cvetanovski missed their attempts which gave Uruguay the win as they had scored all four of their penalties.
Young Socceroos Head Coach Jan Versleijen was pleased with his team's first match on tour.
"We had some new players today and it took us a while to get into the flow of the match," said Versleijen.
"Jason Hoffman had good chances in the first half which unfortunately he couldn't convert.
"In the second half we controlled the midfield and this started to create chances.
"The last 15 minutes of the game the field opened up allowing both teams some greater chances to score.
"We had our opportunities, but Uruguay had better luck in the penalty shoot out," concluded Versleijen.
The Qantas Young Socceroos will face the USA on Monday afternoon (local time) and then C.A. Tiro Federal on Wednesday evening (local time).
The tournament is the final warm-up for the Qantas Young Socceroos before the FIFA U-20 World Cup to be held in Egypt from 24 September to 16 October. Australia has drawn Brazil, Costa Rica and the Czech Republic in the group stage.
Qantas Young Socceroos line-up: Andrew REDMAYNE (gk), Peter CVETANOVSKI, Luke DEVERE (c), Matthew JURMAN, Antony GOLEC, Sam MUNRO, Tahj MINNIECON (Rocco VISCONTE 64'), Aaron MOOY, Jason HOFFMAN, Mitch NICHOLS (Nathan ELASI 80'), Kofi DANNING (Chris PAYNE 70').
Substitutes Not Used: Alex CISAK (gk), Isaka CERNAK, Osama MALIK, Jason NAIDOVSKI, Nikola STANOJEVIC, Nik TSATTALIOS.
Yellow Cards: Mitch Nichols 30', Matt Jurman 45'.
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