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'We can't be disappointed' S. Korea beats Australia but misses out on semifinals
SUWON, South Korea (AP) -- South Korea finally cracked Australia's defense and ended the Socceroos' unbeaten Confederations Cup run Sunday with a 1-0 win, but still missed a semifinals berth. France thrashed Mexico 4-0 in a match being played simultaneously at Ulsan to finish with two wins and a loss in preliminaries, equal with Australia and South Korea but ahead on goals for and against. The Aussies, who opened with a 2-0 win over defending titlist Mexico and then upset world champion France 1-0, placed No. 2 in Group A and advanced to the semis on a better goal differential than Korea. A 5-0 loss to France in the tournament opener last Wednesday at Daegu cost the South Koreans, who were heavily criticized for being overawed by the world No. 1. "Yes, we missed the semifinals but we can't be disappointed after winning tonight," said South Korea captain Hong Myung-bo. "What we're most disappointed about was our loss to France -- it damaged our chances." The hosts rebounded with a 2-1 win against Mexico and the morale-boosting win Sunday in front of almost 44,000 fanatical spectators at Suwon's World Cup Stadium -- venue for the 2002 World Cup opener. South Korea went into the match needing to win by four goals to advance at the tournament it is co-hosting with Japan as a warmup to the World Cup. But Hwang Sun-hong's 28th-minute shot was to be the only goal the Australians conceded in preliminaries. "We knew it would be extremely difficult to score four goals against Australia, but we gave everything we have," said Hong, speaking through a translator. Dutch coach Guus Hiddink said his South Korean lineup would have had a better chance of advancing if Roger Lemerre had not fielded a French 'B' team against Australia last Friday. "It's a pity for me and the people of South Korea that France didn't take the game against Australia -- in my opinion -- very seriously," Hiddink said. "It's disappointing because we had two good victories." Coach Frank Farina admitted his Australians looked lethargic in the first half, probably because they were virtually assured of a semifinal spot before the match. "Sure it's disappointing to lose a game but at the end of the day, we'd already done the hard yards and there was no way we were going to get beaten 4-0 tonight," Farina said. "The second half I thought we played a lot better, created the best chances and were unlucky not to score." The Australians went close to equalizing in the 85th minute but Lee Woon-jae pulled off a save and Clayton Zane's challenge on the Korean 'keeper earned him his second yellow card. Reduced to 10 men in the dying minutes, Australia held out to limit the damage but will now be without its key striker for the semis. Both teams exchanged shots on goal in the second half, with Brett Emerton's left-foot strike blocked in the 54th minute and Zane's angled header from the resulting corner kick sliding across the face of goals. Australian goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer made a fingertip save the next minute off Choi Sung-yong's right-foot drive to prevent South Korea extending its lead. Australia's defensive line leaked its first goal here when Hwang's glancing right-footer sailed over Schwarzer midway through the first half and into the back left corner of the net. "It's disappointing that we didn't keep our unblemished record intact but I was more disappointed with the way we conceded -- it was some pretty sloppy defense," Schwarzer said. "Although you have to admit, [Hwang] took the chance really well." After a series of poor defensive passes, Park Young-ho stole possession and then chipped a pass into the penalty area, where a leaping Hwang steered home the match-winner. In Group B preliminaries Monday, undefeated Japan hosts world No. 2 Brazil in a playoff for top spot and Olympic gold medalist Cameroon -- 0-2 in preliminaries -- takes on Canada at Niigata. Lineups: South Korea: Lee Woon-jae, Lee Min-sung, Hong Myung-bo (captain), Song Chong-gug, Kim Tae-young, Park Ji-sung, Lee Young-pyo, Choi Sung-Yong, Kim Do-hoon (64th Choi Yong-soo), Seol Ki-hyeon, Hwang Sun-hong. Australia: Mark Schwarzer, Kevin Muscat, Craig Moore, Tony Vidmar, Paul Okon (82nd Aurelio Vidmar), Shaun Murphy, Hayden Foxe (45th Scott Chipperfield), Marco Bresciano, Brett Emerton, Steve Corica (45th David Zdrilic), Zane Clayton. Referee: Ruiz Acosta Oscar Julian, Columbia.
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