Ghana could only draw 1-1 with Australia despite the Socceroos having Harry Kewell sent off in the 24th minute.
Kewell sent off for handball as Socceroos battle for Group D point
Ghana could only draw 1-1 with Australia despite the Socceroos having Harry Kewell sent off in the 24th minute at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium.
Off the back of a heavy 4-0 loss against Germany, Pim Verbeek's men responded well against Ghana as they took an early lead via Brett Holman following a howler from goalkeeper Richard Kingson.
But the game swung back in Ghana's favour 13 minutes later when Kewell was penalised for a handball on the goalline to allow Asamoah Gyan to score his second penalty of the World Cup.
However, despite boasting a numerical advantage, Ghana failed to claim their second win of Group D, meaning they and Australia can still reach the last 16 ahead of their final fixtures against Germany and Serbia respectively.
Ghana were forced into two changes by injuries to captain John Mensah and Isaac Vorsah, with Lee Addy and 19-year-old defender Jonathan Mensah draughted in. Kewell was chosen to lead the Australia attack in one of four alterations by coach Pim Verbeek to the side that lost 4-0 to Germany. David Carney, Mark Bresciano replaces and Holman were all given the nod.
After just two minutes, Australia had a strong appeal for a penalty waved away by referee Roberto Rossetti. Kewell darted into the box from the right channel and got beyond defender Lee Addy, whose legs tangled with the forward's, forcing the pair to both hit the deck. But it was nothing doing from the official.
Nervy
Ghana's defence looked shaky early on, particularly when miscommunication between goalkeeper Kingson and Addy almost resulted in a gaffe as the pair collided. But Australia did not have to wait too much longer for another error as Mark Bresciano trotted up to take a free-kick in the 11th minute.
The midfielder struck a fairly routine shot but, after the ball had bounced before reaching goal, Kingson spilled awfully. Holman was quick to pounce, firing the rebound back goalwards. Kingson got a hand to the effort but could not prevent the ball nestling home.
After two deflected pops from Ghana, all hell broke loose. A corner was eventually cut back to Jonathan Mensah, who lashed at goal. But his strike was blocked away by the arm of the on-the-goalline Kewell, who was subsequently dismissed for handball and preventing a certain goal. Gyan stepped up to convert his second penalty of the tournament.
But despite their numerical advantage, Ghana failed to impose themselves. Indeed, the first half dwindled towards a conclusion, until on 44 minutes Mark Schwarzer was forced to make a fine stop low down to his right following a driving shot by Kevin-Prince Boateng. But that was a rare foray by the Africans.
The Ghanaians started the second period with a lot more purpose. First, Kwadwo Asamoah burst past his marker before firing wide of the post. And then goalscorer Gyan tried his luck, with his curling on-target effort saved by shot-stopper Schwarzer.
Flair
Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac opted to shuffle his pack 11 minutes after the interval, throwing on the unpredictable figure of Quincy Owusu-Abeyie in place of Prince Tagoe. And the former Arsenal player did inject extra drive into his side's attack, as moments later Gyan plopped a shot straight at Schwarzer.
Australia's opponents continued to struggle for clear-cut chances. And, in fact, the next best opportunity of the game came the Socceroos' way. Just seconds after coming on as a substitute, Scott Chipperfield thumped a header over the bar following a fine cross from Luke Wilkshire.
Then, up the other end, a vicious cross from Gyan so nearly found Asamoah at the far stick, but such was the pace of the delivery that the latter could not make contact. And Gyan was again involved in the 68th minute when he ran onto a Boateng through ball only to toe his chance off target.
Australia steadily grew as the game progressed, despite playing with 10 men, with the nation keen to exploit Ghana's youthful centre-back pairing. And on 72 minutes, Wilkshere had a golden chance to grab a potential winner when picked out in the box, but he placed his shot into the body of the sprawled Kingson.
And so the pattern continued, with Ghana struggling dearly against a resolute Australian outfit that came in for so much criticism for their performance versus Germany. Indeed, Verbeek's charges could have pinched it, although Mensah and Owusu-Abeyie did both go close late on, but matters in Rustenburg eventually ended all square.
| Ghana |
Team Statistics |
Australia |
| 1 |
Goals |
1 |
| 1 |
1st Half Goals |
1 |
| 5 |
Shots on Target |
4 |
| 14 |
Shots off Target |
4 |
| 5 |
Blocked Shots |
1 |
| 6 |
Corners |
1 |
| 22 |
Fouls |
18 |
| 2 |
Offsides |
2 |
| 3 |
Yellow Cards |
1 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
1 |
| 84.1 |
Passing Success |
75.4 |
| 14 |
Tackles |
12 |
| 92.9 |
Tackles Success |
75 |
| 53.9 |
Possession |
46.1 |
| 55 |
Territorial Advantage |
45 |
|
