Australia 3-1 Ecuador: international football friendly – as it happened
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Final thoughtsWell, that was an entertaining evening of football. There wasn’t a huge crowd but those that did make it out to Parramatta for the Socceroos’ homecoming were rewarded with an impressive showing from Graham Arnold’s side. Jackson Irvine was excellent, Duke and Goodwin stood out, Souttar and Rowls were solid at the back, O’Neill put in a fine debut performance and Kuol bagged his first Socceroos goal. Oh, and Alex Robertson needlessly kicked off near the end to endear himself to his new Australian fans. We were just deprived an appearance by Nestory Irankunda, but there’s always next time for that. All in all, a decent night out.
On to Melbourne on Tuesday. Be sure to join us again for that one. But for tonight, it’s goodbye.
Alex Robertson is a bit stuck for words. He’s here with his dad and his granddad.
“It was great, my grandad and my dad had done it. I cannot really describe how it feels.”
On the penalty incident:
“I took the touch and he tripped me up, there is no VAR so it is what the referee sees. I am playing for a country that means a lot to me and my family, I would do anything for the shirt and the team I am playing with and that comes with passion and I thought that was a penalty and that is why the reaction, pointing in my face, it was emotions being on the pitch.”
Asked if he’s now a Socceroo for life, he says: “I hope so, that is out of my hands but I hope so.”
And here he is, the man of the moment, Garang Kuol:
“Beautiful moment to score a first goal. I think I almost missed it. Happy with the points, the boys fought hard and a win is all we wanted.
“Straight away, the camaraderie, the brotherhood is back, especially after the World Cup. Feels like a second family. Very special place, being with the boys.”
Here’s how Kuol opened his Socceroos’ account – not the prettiest finish we’ll ever see, with a whiff of offside to boot, but they all count.
And here’s Aiden O’Neill, who enjoyed a decent debut tonight:
“Unbelievable, hard to put into words, my family are here from Brisbane, my sister and everything so it was unbelievable and to get a result like that, we were disciplined and played really well. I have been enjoying my football and tonight I enjoyed that and I felt like I belong.”
Big Harry Souttar speaks:
“So pleased for the boys, we saw some young boys playing tonight, unbelievable. Aiden O’Neill making his debut, not going to get many boys better than that. Garang Kuol, the future is really big.”
On Alex Robertson’s debut and the slight drama surrounding him at the end:
“He is still young, 18, 19, and I said to him I love that, that is what we are all about and I thought it was a penalty, to be honest. I am really pleased for him and all of the boys.”
90+5 mins: All over and Australia register an entertaining victory against a good Ecuador side on their homecoming!
90+4 mins: Borrello goes mighty close to a fourth for Australia as time runs out. He shoots across Ramirez, but it’s inches wide of the far post!
90 mins: Five minutes of added time to be played.
89 mins: Oh dear. Robertson loses his head a bit here. He goes down in the box under the challenge of Mendez and is convinced he should have a penalty. The ref disagrees, and Mendez believes he’s dived. The Ecuadorian points an accusatory finger at the Australian and taps him on the head. Robertson responds by springing up and grabbing Mendez by his shirt. It’s all over as quickly as it started though – no cards.
88 mins: Another change made by Arnold now – Jackson Irvine takes his leave after a goal and an assist; Conor Metcalfe comes on in his place.
87 mins: He does! And Ryan is called into action, but it’s a relatively straight-forward save for him.
86 mins: Ryan may have another save to make here, as Ecuador plot a free-kick, around 30 yards out. Looks like Estupinan’s going to have a pop on goal…
84 mins: Again, more than a hint of offside about that one as the ball came across to Kuol but there’s no VAR tonight and he won’t care.
GOAL! Australia 3-1 Ecuador (Kuol 83)More good build up play from Australia as Robertson feeds Borrello, who plays in Behich. The full-back centres and Kuol is there to tap in from close range! A first international goal for Kuol, and should be that now!
82 mins: Borrello to Tilio, back to Borrello, but his shot is blocked and the ball goes behind for an Australia corner! Nice link up play from the subs.
80 mins: Into the final 10 minutes we go. Ryan has made four saves tonight, to Ramirez’s three.
79 mins: Ryan is called into action to deny Caicedo’s effort from a narrow angle, that was heading for the roof of the net in a not dissimilar fashion to Mabil’s earlier goal.
78 mins: More Australia changes… Goodwin and Mabil make way for Kuol and Tilio.
76 mins: Cifientes fancies his luck from distance and tries to catch Ryan off his line. No dice though, it’s way off target.
75 mins: Robertson and Mabil combine nicely before the latter is hauled down by Estupinan. Another free-kick to Australia.
73 mins: Oooh! It goes to the back stick, where Souttar climbs to head back across the face of goal! Rowles is there but his effort is clawed away by Ramirez, with Mabil close on hand too! Close to a third for the Socceroos!
72 mins: The ref does blow up this time as O’Neill tumbles under a high boot from Caicedo. Goodwin is over the free-kick and has a chance to deliver a good ball into the box now.
70 mins: O’Neill brings down Cifientes right on the edge of the Australian box, but the ref waves play on, somewhat incredibly.
68 mins: Where’s Irankunda?
67 mins: Here comes a change for Ecuador – Preciado’s race is run. And on come Arreaga, Sornoza and Rodriguez, with Mena and Estrada also coming off.
66 mins: Robertson gets involved soon enough, clashing in the air with Preciado, who stays down and will require a bit of attention.
64 mins: A bit scrappy at the moment, as Ecuador win a few free-kicks for cheap fouls in midfield.
63 mins: Let’s see what the Man City youngster, who becomes a third generation Socceroo, has got. Arnold seems to rate him highly.
62 mins: Here we go then. Alex Robertson comes on to make his Socceroos debut! Brandon Borrello enters the fray with him, at the expense of Baccus and Duke. (Duke has been good tonight.)
59 mins: Successive corners to Ecuador don’t lead to anything, so let’s enjoy Mabil’s strike, should we?
57 mins: Again lovely buildup play from the Socceroos as Goodwin backheels to Duke, who has his heels clipped just as he draws back his foot to shoot, but the whistle has already gone for offside (it’s not offside, the TV replay later shows).
56 mins: The Socceroos attempt to play out of the back, but Ecuador press well and pin them back. In the end, Behich wins a free-kick.
55 mins: I can’t see it, but I can hear vocal efforts being made to begin a Mexican wave in the stands. Still plenty of interest on the pitch though.
