Australia's match against Scotland's pride and joy, Glasgow Rangers, at the Sydney Cricket Ground last Sunday, was a useful exercise. It showed that Australia, despite the narrow defeat, can look ahead with confidence to its 1978 World Cup campaign. There shouldn't be any great need to make too many spectacular changes to the side which took the field against the Scots to stand at least a 50-50 chance of again qualifying for the finals as the Asian region's representative.
ENCOURAGING
Room will probably have to be found for Col Curran, either at fullback or in the midfield, and for Adrian Alston, who must take time off from his English commitments if he is still abroad when the elimination games are on. Otherwise unless something very spectacular happens, and there are injuries or dramatic reversals of form, most of the Socceroos who lined up against Rangers last Sunday should fit the bill admirably in 1977. This realisation to me, was the most encouraging lesson from the SCG game. Though the team revealed the irritating traditional Australian inability to finish off promising attacking moves, it played well for a side having its first outing (after only a three-day camp) since February. Australia, actually, should have won, or at the very worst, drawn. Rangers can thank their goalkeeper Peter McCloy for keeping their noses in front at the finish.
DEMORALISING
He was much busier than his Aussie counterpart Jack Reilly, and some of his saves were positively breathtaking - and demoralising for the Australian camp. I'll never know how he got a hand to Dave Harding's right-footed (!) ground shot or how he managed to keep his net intact under the barrage of Peter Ollerton headers coming at him from all angles and distances. It's not so long ago that it was the Australian 'keeper who was expected to play a "blinder" against a touring team of Rangers reputation, not the other way round. Australia lost nothing in comparison with their world-famous opponents, with the notable, vital exception of finishing power. And that was what swung the result the Scots' way. They had three scoring chances - and Parlane nabbed two, the other being miraculously saved off the line by Harry Williams. Australia on the other hand, could have netted three or four from their eight good chances but had to be content with an 82nd minute penalty - given for a foul by Jackson on Campbell - to post a solitary goal on the board. The crowd, which was nowhere near as big as some had predicted, despite the glorious, almost summer-like weather, got its money's worth and thoroughly enjoyed 90 minutes of action football. The large contingent of Scottish supporters in the crowd made more noise than the Aussie fans, but those more than made up for it in the last eight minutes when the Socceroos launched attack after attack in a belated bid for the equaliser.
ATMOSPHERE
The atmosphere then resembled that of the 1973 World Cup matches at the Showground, and again showed the kind of support an Australian soccer team can muster when it wins the hearts of the spectators with spectacular all-out attack. Full marks to all the Socceroos - and to the much maligned Eric Worthington and Tony Boggi - for a job well done (irrespective of what happened in the second match in Brisbane after we went to press this week). Rangers, whose percentage football enables them to perform with a minimum of errors, were an efficient, if unspectacular team. But they were ideal trial-horses for the Australians. They are much stronger than any of the Asian teams we will have to face in two years, and by performing so encouragingly - with virtually no preperation - against one of Europe's better teams Australia proved conclusively that its national team remains a very viable proposition.