Sunday, June 20, 2010

Ghana manages a draw against Kewell less Socceroos

Group D, 14:00 GMT, June 19, 2010
Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg, South Africa


Ghana
1 - 1
Australia



Ten-man Australia kept their slim hopes of qualifying for the next round of the World Cup alive after a dogged second-half display earned them a point against Ghana in Rustenburg.


Harry Kewell was sent off for the Socceroos midway through the first half after referee Roberto Rosetti deemed he had used his arm to keep out a certain goal for Jonathan Mensah after 23 minutes.




Scoring Summary

GhanaAustralia
Asamoah Gyan (pen 25')Brett Holman (11')

Man of the Match: Asamoah Gyan



MATCH SUMMARY


  • Man of the Match: Asamoah Gyan - The Ghana striker's credentials have been questioned in recent months but he boasts two goals in two World Cup games, albeit both from the penalty spot. Gyan put in a purposeful performance and was a menace throughout. He just pips his excellent team-mate Andre Ayew to the award.




  • Ghana verdict: The Black Stars started in sluggish fashion and were unable to take full advantage of the red card shown to Harry Kewell. Their second-half performance left something to be desired as they allowed Australia to gain a foothold in the game, missing the chance to take a huge step towards the second round.




  • Australia verdict: After looking so devoid of inspiration against Germany, this was a vast improvement from Pim Verbeek's side. Australia found themselves down to ten men for the second game in succession but refused to buckle this time, and could have snatched an unlikely win in the latter stages.




  • Could do better: Referee Roberto Rosetti - The Italian was responsible for one of the worst mistakes in the World Cup so far as he inexplicably missed a superb save by Mark Schwarzer when deciding that a shot from Kevin-Prince Boateng had merely gone out for a goal-kick. Shocking.




  • Stat attack: Brett Holman is the youngest ever goalscorer for Australia in the World Cup, beating Tim Cahill by 105 days.
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