Live Commentary
The match has reached full-time.
- 91mins
Lucas Neill takes a shot. Richard Kingson makes a save.
- 91mins
Effort on goal by Sulley Muntari from outside the area goes harmlessly over the bar.
- 91mins
Quincy Owusu-Abeyie takes a shot from 20 yards. Mark Schwarzer makes a brilliant save. Short corner worked by Sulley Muntari.
- 90mins
Inswinging corner taken from the right by-line by Sulley Muntari.
- 88mins
Craig Moore concedes a free kick for a foul on Matthew Amoah. Sulley Muntari produces a cross, Jonathan Mensah has a headed effort at goal from close in which goes wide right of the target.
- 87mins
Nikita Rukavytsya gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Richard Kingson. Matthew Amoah on for Kevin-Prince Boateng. Direct free kick taken by Richard Kingson.
- 85mins
Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Craig Moore by Andre Ayew. Craig Moore goes into the book for dissent. Craig Moore takes the free kick.
- 86mins
Joshua Kennedy concedes a free kick for a foul on Anthony Annan. Richard Kingson takes the direct free kick.
- 84mins
Unfair challenge on Anthony Annan by Craig Moore results in a free kick. Richard Kingson takes the direct free kick.
- 83mins
Free kick awarded for a foul by Anthony Annan on Scott Chipperfield. Anthony Annan goes into the referee's book for unsporting behaviour. Luke Wilkshire leaves the field to be replaced by Nikita Rukavytsya. Free kick taken by David Carney.
- 82mins
Quincy Owusu-Abeyie is penalised for a handball. Mark Schwarzer restarts play with the free kick.
- 80mins
Kevin-Prince Boateng gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Luke Wilkshire. Free kick taken by Mark Schwarzer.
- 78mins
Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Scott Chipperfield by Jonathan Mensah. Jonathan Mensah is cautioned by the ref for unsporting behaviour. Brett Emerton has an effort direct from the free kick.
- 76mins
Sulley Muntari comes on in place of Kwadwo Asamoah.
- 74mins
Joshua Kennedy is ruled offside. Direct free kick taken by Richard Kingson.
- 73mins
The ball is swung over by Brett Emerton, Anthony Annan makes a clearance.
- 71mins
Scott Chipperfield takes a shot. Save by Richard Kingson. Joshua Kennedy takes a shot.
- 70mins
Asamoah Gyan produces a left-footed shot from the edge of the box and misses to the left of the goal.
- 70mins
Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Hans Sarpei by Brett Emerton. Hans Sarpei takes the direct free kick.
- 69mins
Quincy Owusu-Abeyie takes a shot from just outside the penalty area clears the crossbar.
- 68mins
Joshua Kennedy fouled by Anthony Annan, the ref awards a free kick. Direct free kick taken by Luke Wilkshire.
- 67mins
(Australia) makes a substitution, with Joshua Kennedy coming on for Brett Holman.
- 66mins
Asamoah Gyan crosses the ball.
- 66mins
The ball is crossed by Luke Wilkshire, Scott Chipperfield produces a header from deep inside the six-yard box that clears the crossbar.
- 65mins
Handball by Andre Ayew. Scott Chipperfield replaces Marco Bresciano. Mark Schwarzer takes the direct free kick.
- 63mins
Free kick awarded for a foul by Andre Ayew on Lucas Neill. Luke Wilkshire takes the direct free kick.
- 63mins
Jonathan Mensah has a shot and missed to the right of the target.
- 62mins
Kwadwo Asamoah fouled by Lucas Neill, the ref awards a free kick. Kwadwo Asamoah takes the direct free kick.
- 62mins
Effort from long distance by Kevin-Prince Boateng goes wide of the left-hand upright.
- 61mins
Luke Wilkshire gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Kevin-Prince Boateng. Quincy Owusu-Abeyie crosses the ball from the free kick right-footed from left wing, Craig Moore manages to make a clearance.
- 59mins
Asamoah Gyan takes a shot. Save by Mark Schwarzer.
- 58mins
Free kick awarded for a foul by Quincy Owusu-Abeyie on Lucas Neill. Direct free kick taken by Lucas Neill.
- 56mins
Brett Holman fouled by Lee Addy, the ref awards a free kick. The ball is delivered by Luke Wilkshire, Craig Moore has a headed effort at goal from close in which goes wide of the left-hand upright.
- 56mins
The ball is swung over by Kwadwo Asamoah, Mark Schwarzer makes a save.
- 55mins
Quincy Owusu-Abeyie is brought on as a substitute for Prince Tagoe.
- 55mins
Kwadwo Asamoah takes a shot. Jason Culina gets a block in.
- 52mins
Luke Wilkshire takes a outswinging corner.
- 52mins
The ball is sent over by Prince Tagoe, Mark Schwarzer makes a save.
- 50mins
Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Carl Valeri by Kwadwo Asamoah. Direct free kick taken by Mark Schwarzer.
- 50mins
Shot from long range by John Pantsil goes wide of the left-hand post.
- 49mins
Shot by Asamoah Gyan. Save by Mark Schwarzer.
- 48mins
Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Hans Sarpei by Brett Emerton. Direct free kick taken by Richard Kingson.
- 48mins
Asamoah Gyan gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Lucas Neill. Free kick taken by Lucas Neill.
- 46mins
Effort from a long way out by Kwadwo Asamoah goes wide right of the target.
- 45mins
Prince Tagoe gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on David Carney. Mark Schwarzer restarts play with the free kick.
The match restarts for the second half.
The referee blows for half time.
- 43mins
Kevin-Prince Boateng takes a shot.
- 41mins
Handball by Brett Emerton. Richard Kingson restarts play with the free kick.
- 41mins
Kevin-Prince Boateng crosses the ball, save made by Mark Schwarzer.
- 41mins
The ball is delivered by Kevin-Prince Boateng, clearance by Craig Moore.
- 39mins
Unfair challenge on Marco Bresciano by Lee Addy results in a free kick. Lee Addy shown a yellow card. Lucas Neill takes the direct free kick.
- 38mins
The ball is delivered by David Carney.
- 38mins
Brett Emerton crosses the ball, Jonathan Mensah makes a clearance.
- 37mins
Prince Tagoe gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Marco Bresciano. Direct free kick taken by David Carney.
- 35mins
Unfair challenge on Kwadwo Asamoah by Craig Moore results in a free kick. Direct effort from the free kick comes in from Kwadwo Asamoah.
- 34mins
The referee blows for offside. Jason Culina takes the free kick.
- 31mins
Kevin-Prince Boateng crosses the ball, Craig Moore manages to make a clearance. Free kick awarded for an unfair challenge on Brett Emerton by Andre Ayew. David Carney takes the free kick.
- 29mins
Asamoah Gyan concedes a free kick for a foul on Brett Emerton. Direct free kick taken by Lucas Neill.
- 27mins
Asamoah Gyan fouled by Marco Bresciano, the ref awards a free kick. John Pantsil produces a cross, Header from deep inside the area by Asamoah Gyan goes harmlessly over the crossbar.
- 26mins
Effort from inside the area by Prince Tagoe misses to the left of the goal.
- 23mins
Harry Kewell is penalised for handball and concedes a . Harry Kewell is sent off. Asamoah Gyan scores a placed penalty. Ghana 1-1 Australia.
- 22mins
Asamoah Gyan takes a shot. Lucas Neill gets a block in. Inswinging corner taken by Andre Ayew from the right by-line, clearance made by Luke Wilkshire.
- 19mins
Andre Ayew takes a shot. Lucas Neill gets a block in. Corner taken by Andre Ayew from the right by-line, Mark Schwarzer makes a save.
- 16mins
The ball is crossed by Andre Ayew. The assistant referee signals for offside against Andre Ayew. Mark Schwarzer restarts play with the free kick.
- 16mins
Foul by Brett Holman on Lee Addy, free kick awarded. Lee Addy takes the free kick.
- 15mins
Marco Bresciano fouled by John Pantsil, the ref awards a free kick. Free kick taken by David Carney.
- 14mins
Harry Kewell gives away a free kick for an unfair challenge on Jonathan Mensah. Jonathan Mensah takes the free kick.
- 13mins
Free kick awarded for a foul by Luke Wilkshire on Andre Ayew. Andre Ayew takes the direct free kick.
- 13mins
Free kick awarded for a foul by Brett Emerton on Anthony Annan. Free kick taken by Richard Kingson.
- 9mins
Anthony Annan concedes a free kick for a foul on Carl Valeri. Strike on goal comes in from Marco Bresciano from the free kick, save by Richard Kingson. A goal is scored by Brett Holman from close in to the top right corner of the goal. Ghana 0-1 Australia.Inswinging corner taken by Andre Ayew, save by Mark Schwarzer.
- 8mins
Inswinging corner taken left-footed by Kwadwo Asamoah from the right by-line to the near post, clearance by Brett Emerton.
- 6mins
Harry Kewell fouled by Jonathan Mensah, the ref awards a free kick. Marco Bresciano delivers the ball from the free kick right-footed from left wing.
- 5mins
Kevin-Prince Boateng takes a shot and went wide left of the target.
- 4mins
Foul by Brett Holman on Kevin-Prince Boateng, free kick awarded. Direct free kick taken by Richard Kingson.
- 4mins
Harry Kewell fouled by Kwadwo Asamoah, the ref awards a free kick. Craig Moore restarts play with the free kick.
The referee gets the match started.
Match Preview
Rajevac confident despite injury troubles Ghana face major injury concerns ahead of their clash against Australia in Rustenburg, but coach Milovan Rajevac remains confident his side can claim the victory that would put them in command of Group D. The Black Stars will be without defender Isaac Vorsah, while his first-choice centre-back partner John Mensah is also struggling. It means that Rajevac may have to field a completely different pairing in central defence, an area that was so key in helping them keep a clean sheet against Serbia in their opening World Cup game - a match they won 1-0. But Rajevac is optimistic his team can cope with the Socceroos, who must win or face the possibility of an early exit. He said: "Vorsah has not been training over the past seven days, we will see, but I don't think he will be able to play. "We will see how the situation is with Mensah, but we have other players who can replace them you know. We have enough players to come in and replace them." The west Africans will head into the game as favourites following that opening win against Rajevac's fellow countrymen, a victory that is the only one by a nation from the home continent so far in the tournament. But the Ghanaian boss says he has been warning his players all week about complacency. He continued: "Over the past few days we have been preparing for that. We didn't want players to be overly confident. "They have to be well concentrated. You know everything happens on the pitch. By making statements we will not win, it's only by the way we perform on the pitch. "Also, you have seen how the results have gone in this World Cup, so there are no favourites. "It's all about playing well and getting the result - that's the most important thing." Germany's 1-0 defeat to Serbia on Friday has thrown the group wide open and Rajevac knows that only victory will do for his team. He said: "The game between Germany and Serbia shows that at the World Cup there is no easy game and the situation becomes more complicated for all of us in this group. "We did win against Serbia, but it's now that the real job awaits us. We have two more games to play and Serbia now has the opportunity to get to the round of 16." Pim Verbeek insists he has had more difficult weeks with Australia during his two-and-a-half years in charge and is confident of a strong reaction from his players when they come up against Ghana. The Socceroos were thrashed 4-0 by Germany on Sunday in a dismal opening to their campaign and now face a must-win encounter in Rustenburg. They currently sit bottom of Group D, but defeat by the Germans against Serbia earlier today has thrown the race for the top two places wide open. "We have had several training sessions this week and the players reacted very well to the loss against Germany," the coach said. "We all know the situation now. "The only thing we can do is win against Ghana tomorrow. I expect a good reaction from the players and have confidence they will do everything to get the three points." The Dutchman claims there were occasions during the road to South Africa that more than matched the difficulty of the past six days. He also revealed they have not done anything differently to counter what happened in Durban, with their preparations following the usual course. Verbeek continued: "I think we had more difficult weeks during our World Cup qualification, to be honest. "After we lost against Germany, we knew what we had to do and that's winning against Ghana." Tim Cahill, who is suspended for the game after his red card against Germany, misses out, along with Vince Grella (knee), but Harry Kewell is fully fit for the first time and will be gunning for a place. Verbeek said: "It's clear that a player with the quality of Tim will be missed. "He is a very important player for us, but when you go to the World Cup you take 23 players. So the other players will have to do what he always does - score goals." Another talking point in the Australian media this week has been suggestions of infighting between the coach and some of his players. However, he denied this, adding: "I love Australian media, I think they're fantastic. "They should write what they like about us. It's a free world, I have no problems with that. I have no problems with my players, so I don't care." end
Ghana
Australia
- Richard Kingson
- John Pantsil
- Jonathan Mensah
- Lee Addy
- Hans Sarpei
- Prince Tagoe
- Anthony Annan
- Kwadwo Asamoah
- Kevin-Prince Boateng
- Andre Ayew
- Asamoah Gyan
- SUBS
- Daniel Adjei
- John Mensah
- Samuel Inkoom
- Derek Boateng
- Stephen Appiah
- Sulley Muntari
- Matthew Amoah
- Issac Vorsah
- Rahim Ayew
- Dominic Adiyah
- Quincy Owusu-Abeyie
- Stephen Ahorlu
Home
Away
- Mark Schwarzer
- Luke Wilkshire
- Lucas Neill
- Craig Moore
- David Carney
- Jason Culina
- Carl Valeri
- Brett Emerton
- Brett Holman
- Marco Bresciano
- Harry Kewell
- SUBS
- Adam Federici
- Michael Beauchamp
- Joshua Kennedy
- Scott Chipperfield
- Mile Jedinak
- Nikita Rukavytsya
- Richard Garcia
- Mark Milligan
- Dario Vidosic
- Eugene Galekovic
Match Report
Socceroos battle for point Ten-man Australia kept their slim hopes of qualifying for the next round of the World Cup alive after a dogged second-half display earned them a point in a 1-1 draw against Ghana in Rustenburg. Harry Kewell was sent off for the Socceroos midway through the first half after referee Roberto Rosetti deemed he had used his arm to keep out a certain goal for Jonathan Mensah after 23 minutes. Asamoah Gyan made no mistake with the resulting penalty to cancel out an earlier strike from Brett Holman at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium as the two sides went on to end the Group D encounter with a point each. At the start Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac was forced into two changes in the key centre-back area, where Isaac Vorsah and John Mensah were ruled out, with Jonathan Mensah and Lee Addy drafted in instead. There were changes from Pim Verbeek too - four in total with Holman, Marco Bresciano and Kewell amongst them - and it clearly made a difference from the outset. Australia looked hungry and Kewell had an early penalty shout turned down after a nervous Addy was almost dispossessed in the box. More suspect defending saw Addy and goalkeeper Richard Kingson collide after pressure from another chasing Australian, before the deadlock was broken. Carl Valeri was brought down by Anthony Annan just outside the box and Bresciano's free-kick was fumbled by the Ghanaian goalkeeper allowing Holman to swoop. The Black Stars slowly began to recover and came close after 20 minutes when Andre Ayew and then Gyan saw their shots deflected over. Then came the turning point of the game - Ayew's trickery down the right allowing him to lay the ball on for Jonathan Mensah, whose shot was kept out by the hand of Kewell. Referee Rosetti had no hesitation in sending off the forward and Gyan easily dispatched the penalty by sending Mark Schwarzer the wrong way. The goal came in the 24th minute and moments later Prince Tagoe had a good chance to put his side in front, but dragged his long-range strike wide. Schwarzer made a fine save moments before half time when he turned Boateng's strike wide to ensure his side head into the break level. After the restart Kwadwo Asamoah wastefully shot wide after a promising counter-attack, while Gyan showed good accuracy from distance with a low shot that was not cleanly gathered by the Australia goalkeeper, who was fortunate not to have had any attacking players close by. Quincy Owusu-Abeyie replaced Tagoe in the 56th minute, but Ghana were still restricted to long-range shooting - Rennes striker Gyan again sending in a comfortable shot for Schwarzer to deal with. Scott Chipperfield was brought on 10 minutes later and had a great chance to make an immediate impact when Luke Wilkshire swung over a cross from the right, but the free header went flying over. When the Ghanaians did manage to get into the box, Gyan sliced wide after a neatly threaded pass from Boateng. Verbeek's side had another great chance to take the lead after 73 minutes when Wilkshire was played in on the right, but Kingson did well to close down the shot and then acrobatically save the much easier rebound shot from substitute Joshua Kennedy. Sulley Muntari was introduced but by then there was more defending to do for the Inter Milan midfielder with Australia throwing everything forward. With time running out, Jonathan Mensah headed wide, while Quincy forced Schwarzer to punch over his 18-yard shot as the game finished 1-1. M
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