Australia Through To The World Cup By Defeating Honduras In Play-off
Australia booked its place at the 2018 World Cup with a convincing 3-1 win over Honduras in front of nearly 80,000 grateful fans at Sydney’s ANZ Stadium.
The undisputed hero of the match was Mile Jedinak who continued his remarkable return following a five-month injury layoff. Immense in the first leg in San Pedro Sula on the weekend, he was the main man when it mattered most.
The 33-year-old scored a hat-trick in a famous victory that was savoured by football fans across the country.
“It’s a bit hard to describe, it’s unreal … we’re very grateful we’re going to another World Cup,” Jedinak said. “It’s extra special. It was our duty to the nation as football players to get this job done.”
Mark Milligan was full of praise for his resilient teammates.
“Extremely special. This group’s gone through a lot from the way we want to play to not qualifying automatically,” he said. “(There was) A lot of talk leading into this and make no mistake, this group deserves everything they get.”