It has been 10 years since the Socceroos last played in Newcastle, but for the locals, it was well worth the wait. Two quick-fire goals for the home side inside the first 15 minutes, and the crowd could sit back, relax, and watch the match unfold.
The Socceroos played smart, efficient football with occasional glimpses of flair. From the opening moments the attitude of the team was positive and engaging, however after taking the two-goal lead the Socceroos stayed compact and, for the most part, were uninspiring.
They certainly weren’t the more skilful of the two sides – the afro-haired little No10 Omar Abdulrahman alone probably possesses more imagination in that sweet left foot of his than the entire Socceroos starting XI. Late in the first half, for example, Adbulrahman casually jinked and weaved through the tightest of spaces, leaving Mile Jedinak and Trent Sainsbury in his wake. Barely two minutes later, Mathew Leckie stumbled – by generous ricochet as much as design – through the UAE midfield before losing control of the ball and crashing unceremoniously into the centre-back, Mohanad Salem.
No, the Socceroos aren’t artists. But for now, who cares? As Ange Postecoglou said after the match, they’ve scored the most goals of any team, they’ve created good opportunities and the crowds have responded well to their proactive approach. Leckie and Robbie Kruse might not possess the fanciest feet, but their value to the team is in their defensive work as well as in attack.
Perhaps the most positive outcome of this match was for the football community in Newcastle. All the talk of this Asian Cup has been about legacy. Major football tournaments in this country are few and far between, and the Asian Cup is by far the biggest in Australia’s history.
In the months prior to kick-off, plenty of work was done to engage the Asian communities living in Australia, while relationships have been cultivated by FFA with government and business groups and the Asian Football Confederation. On last night’s evidence, one of the unexpected legacies might be the boost for football in the Hunter region.
Ten years is a long time in anybody’s books, and although they weren’t treated to a classic, hosting a Socceroos semi-final was a rare privilege for Newcastle. With the vast majority of players, financial muscle and expertise in the metropolitan areas of the Eastern Seaboard, regional Australia has never been a priority for the administration of the game.
The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. These are trying times for Newcastle – the Jets are firmly entrenched in the lower reaches of the A-League ladder, with chief executive, chairman and owner all gone or on the way out. If any area urgently needs a boost, it’s Newcastle. Despite the fact the Jets are utterly, utterly dire, they still have decent membership and crowd numbers.
Loyalty like this, sometimes, needs to be rewarded. Built on the foundations of working-class miners, football in Newcastle has as rich a tradition as anywhere else in Australia, and the locals are proud of it. Inside Hunter Stadium, a banner was unveiled on the Ray Baartz Hill, a tribute to a local legend and one of the unluckiest Socceroos. From a decent vantage point, you can see the Newcastle Showgrounds, where football has been played since before the war.
There’s not been a lot of glory in Newcastle football, however. From Newcastle KB United to Adamstown Rosebuds, Newcastle Breakers, United and Jets, the region’s national league sides could hardly be called powerhouses, and success has often been in staying afloat rather than winning trophies.
But the Asian Cup promised Newcastle five matches, and the community has repaid the faith. The council, despite the jibes from the local newspaper, was one of the few to formally adopt a second side. Before last night’s match, I spoke to a local man wearing a half-half Palestine-Australia kit that he bought in the car park after the opening match between Palestine and Japan. He’s loved all three group stage games, but seeing the Socceroos, of course, is the big one.
For the tournament organisers, having the game in Newcastle rather than, say, Sydney, was a financial loss-maker with just over 20,000 squeezing into a reduced-capacity stadium. But with eight pages dedicated to football in the local paper on the day of the game, and a no-nonsense win for a hard-working town – this can only be seen as a massive boost for the region.
The importance of the Socceroos making the final cannot be understated. A dream final now looms between the host nation and South Korea, who boast one of the largest migrant communities in Australia. In truth, the Local Organising Committee could hardly have scripted it better if they’d tried. Regional, metropolitan and multicultural Australia have all been engaged.
“It’s been great for our game,” said coach Ange Postecoglou after the match. “It would have put a dampener on it if we weren’t in the final, and for us to be there is a good way to end a fantastic tournament. You know, we can always dream, if we win it, it will be one of the biggest games for our code and our country.”
