Father Time may have caught up

MICHAEL LYNCH
19 Jun, 2010 12:00 AM

For Australia's big name stars tonight really could be the ''last chance saloon''.

Unless they can quickly hit form and shrug off the nightmare that was the 4-0 loss to Germany a week earlier, several familiar faces could have played for the last time in the green and gold.

Men like Harry Kewell, Craig Moore, Scott Chipperfield, Vince Grella and Mark Bresciano if selected simply have to stand up and be counted in the must-win match against Ghana at Rustenburg, which kicks off at midnight Canberra time.

That's the time that is usually known as the witching hour, and unless they can weave some sort of magic, Australia will be staring at a straight-sets elimination from the World Cup a far cry from the glory of four years ago in Germany when the Socceroos stunned the world and made the last 16.

So poor was the display against Germany in Durban that many journalists have been quick to label the Socceroos this week as the worst team in the World Cup.

It's only some conjecture about the quality of opposition that Germany beat that has stopped Joachim Loew's team from becoming hot favourites for the Cup: were they that good, or was Australia that bad?

The experienced Australian players are hardened professionals whose pride will be hurt by the manner of their loss and by the opprobrium heaped on them and the coach, Pim Verbeek, who will himself bid Australia adieu after the finals. If Australia does lose against Ghana, the final match against Serbia is a dead rubber, so Verbeek might opt to give players who have not had a run at this World Cup the chance to salvage at least one personal memory from the wreckage of the tournament.

Whatever happens, the new coach of Australia who, if present FFA trends are followed, is likely to be a Dutchman will have a huge rebuilding job on his hands.

Given the dearth of players who have come through in the critical 22-27 age group (only Carl Valeri, Adam Federici, Dario Vidosic, Mile Jedinak, Nikita Rukavytsya and Mark Milligan fit the bill in this squad) the search for new talent cannot start soon enough. But that will begin after the World Cup.

Today is perhaps an opportunity to reflect on who will not be around when the next qualifying campaign for Brazil 2014 gets underway.

Mark Schwarzer

The goalkeeper has been a magnificent servant, his Australian career spanning the best part of two decades. It was as long ago as 1993 that he came to the Socceroos rescue in a penalty shoot out against Canada in a critical World Cup qualifier, heroics he was to repeat on that memorable night in Sydney in November 2005 against Uruguay.

Likely to be a Premiership headliner for another season or two. But it's hard to see him between the posts in Brazil, should Australia make it, in 2014.

Craig Moore

At 34, he will be gone, maybe even by this evening. Been a stalwart since his days in the under-17s and has had a long and decorated career, but as his performance showed against Germany, time has passed him by.

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