Complete Pandemonium
The fallout from Australia’s historic victory against Denmark
Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?
The opening 2 lines of Queen hit Bohemian Rapsody.
Yet as Socceroos fans across the country resumed their normal lives today, they would have been asking themselves this exact question.
And after late-night and early-morning celebrations (booze and flares included), it’s not hard to see why?
So how did Australia pull through for their most famous of victories?
The Match
First Half
After being monstered through much of the first 45, (particularly the opening 30 minutes), the Socceroos were lucky not to be behind. Wrestling back the ascendancy as play approached Stoppage Time, the Aussies gained some momentum heading into half-time. Goal-scoring opportunities were few and far between for the Socceroos in the half, (barring a Riley McGree volley easily saved by Kasper Schmeichel) with the Danes spending the majority of the time on the ball. And if not for defensive beast Harry Souttar (due for a huge Premier League pay-check) producing a number of crucial tackles, Australia may well have found themselves behind.
Second Half
Commencing the 2nd half in the way they ended the 1st, Australia remained on the front foot. But lacking composure and with several poor first touches plaguing numerous chances, they failed to trouble the goalkeeper. So as time ticked towards the hour mark of the match, both sides looked destined to repeat their 2018 1–1 draw in nil-all fashion.
Yet in unexplainable circumstances, and in a perfect advertisement of FIFA’s combined Group-Stage endings, just 2 minutes after Tunisia edged themselves in front of France, (eliminating Australia on live results), the deadlock was broken.
After a Danish attacking breakdown, midfielder Riley McGree found space along the left wing. Spotting up forward Mathew Leckie, one of the veterans of the squad, Leckie embarked on a superb solo run, completely mystifying Joakim Maehle, before guiding a low curling effort toward the goal.
And the rest was history.
Australia hung on for 36 more minutes to secure their most famous victory in history. And the ‘Great Danes’, together with their shell-shocked fans watched on in disbelief as their team, one of the dark horses in this year's Finals, bowed out.
Fall-Out
Following years of heartbreak, this victory was more than just a win. It was a celebration of everything the Socceroos stand for. Of resilience, determination, and unwavering willpower. It was a reversal of decades of pain. And nowhere captured those emotions better than in the heart of Melbourne at Federation Square.
With thousands of fans packing the famous central Melbourne Precinct, (flares in tow) and defying their sleep schedules to capture history, they would’ve been nervous about the way Australia began. But when local boy, Leckie conjured up a miraculous goal, it was complete pandemonium.
Celebrations continued into the early hours of the morning, with fans eager to lap up all the media attention they could muster. And with many viral post-match videos circulating the internet, they certainly succeeded.
So it comes as no surprise Socceroos fans will be hoping for a well-earned public holiday!
What Next?
With the victory, Australia have secured their first Round of 16 birth since 2006. Fresh off back-to-back wins, and clean sheets for the first time in history, the Socceroos will be hoping to go one further than the ‘Golden Generation’ who lost to eventual champions Italy 1–0 in controversial fashion.
With this team remaining in relative obscurity, free from the pressures of the heroes of yesteryear, there remains optimism Australia’s journey can continue. But knockout football is a whole new ball game.
Australia faces South American heavyweights Argentina in the early hours (3:00 — AWST or 6:00 — AEDT) of Sunday morning for a place in the Quarter-Finals. With just 1 loss in 3 years (that monumental first-up loss against Saudi Arabia), the Australians will be huge underdogs. But if this team has taught us anything across the past week, it’s that they can’t be taken lightly.
In the meantime, Australian fans will be lapping up the victory.
And just like that famous song produced way back in 1975, this night will be talked about for a long time to come.
Yet unlike the song's final verse,
Nothing really matters, anyone can see. Nothing really matters, nothing really matters… to me
Something tells me the future of this sport (long lagging behind Cricket, Rugby League, and AFL for popularity) will really matter to we (the Australian public).
