1:12 AM
Happy new year 2012
MICHAEL LYNCH
Who said friendly matches were pointless affairs? Clearly nobody told Australia or Serbia that their clash at Etihad Stadium last night was a game of no consequence.
Credit both coaches -Australia's Holger Osieck and Serbia's Vladimir Petrovic for their enterprising approach, especially in a terrific opening half.
And credit both teams, who shrugged off weariness - Australia had beaten New Zealand 3-0 in Adelaide barely 48 hours earlier, while Serbia had gone down 2-1 in Seoul against South Korea last Friday -to produce an entertaining contest that surged from end to end.
It was a cold Melbourne night, but most of the crowd of more than 28,000 would surely have been warmed by the fare on display, at least for an hour until Osieck made several substitutions which affected the rhythm of his side as he opted to try Rhys Williams, Robbie Kruse, James Troisi (on at the start of the second half) and Dario Vidosic against more searching opposition than they had faced two days earlier.
These two sides had produced a thrilling encounter almost a year ago in South Africa when the Socceroos downed the Serbs in a group game in the World Cup. The fact that some of the key protagonists on both sides - notably Tim Cahill and Mark Schwarzer from Australia, and Nemanja Vidic and Branislav Ivanovic from Serbia - were excused duty last night made little difference.
While the jet-lagged and injury-ravaged Kiwis didn't present too much of an examination, the Serbs, backed by a vocal contingent, showed many times, even without some of their best-known names, the form that makes them a feared side.
Osieck gave local hero Archie Thompson a start but resisted the temptation to play even more to the Melbourne gallery by not including Kruse and Mitchell Langerak, preferring the more experienced Adam Federici in goal and opting for just about his strongest available line-up save for Josh Kennedy, who picked up some bumps and bruises in his two-goal performance against the All Whites. Federici repaid his faith, producing a string of fine saves.
Michael Zullo was given another opportunity at left back after a promising effort on Sunday, before being replaced by Troisi, with the versatile Matt McKay dropping into the back four in the second period.
Zullo took his chance with gusto, almost setting the Socceroos up with a goal within five minutes with a searching run down the left that ended with a cross that his former Brisbane Roar former clubmate McKay almost converted.
It was a bright start for Australia, who had the best of the opening exchanges as they impressed with their movement, stroking the ball around and finding space in tight situations to retain possession.
But it didn't take long for the Serbs to show their class, with Inter Milan midfielder Dejan Stankovic orchestrating slick passing moves and creative attacks, with the impressive Zoran Tosic, Adem Ljajic and Zdravko Kuzmanovic all causing plenty of trouble and their front men happy to pepper Federici's goal with long-range shots.
At the other end, Australia too tested Damir Kahriman in Serbia's goal, their best attack coming when Thompson's lovely flick set the hard-working Brett Holman clear down the right. His pull-back found Mile Jedinak, but the midfielder's goal-bound flick was cleared.
Holman has spent years winning over the doubters but in the past two seasons he has become an essential part of Socceroos, his clever runs and ability to read the game making him a key contributor. It was hardly surprising that when Osieck took off senior men Brett Emerton, Lucas Neill and Luke Wilkshire, he left Holman on to provide leadership.
The second half was more disjointed as both coaches made substitutions and brought in fresh legs, and some of the sting went out of the game. But Tosic showed touches of class as he twisted and turned in the forward third as the Serbs looked the more likely to make a breakthrough. Nevertheless, Troisi had a golden opportunity to win it for the hosts with 12 minutes left, only to shoot straight at Kahriman.
- Sydney Morning Herald
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