Cahill the hero as Socceroos see off Syria

Tim Cahill kept Australia's FIFA World Cup™ dreams alive with a superb headed double as Ange Postecoglou's side beat Syria 2-1 after extra-time.The goals in Sydney were the Socceroos captain and all-time leading scorer's 49th and 50th for his country and set up an Intercontinental Play-off against the fourth-placed team in the CONCACAF Zone.Australia squeezed through the hard way though, coming from behind and enduring some tense and difficult moments despite dominating much of this epic AFC play-off.

They were behind inside six minutes, in fact, when a stray Mark Milligan pass in midfield set up a Syrian counter-attack. The visitors grasped their opportunity to strike, with Tamer Mohamd sprinting through the heart of the Aussie defence and feeding Omar Al Soma for a left-foot shot that sailed high into the net.Australia weren't behind for long, though, and it was no surprise that Cahill was the man to haul them level. It was a superb equaliser too, with the veteran forward heading powerfully home at the end of a slick move on the right wing capped by a glorious Mathew Leckie cross.From that moment onwards, the game was a tale of complete domination by Australia, who monopolised possession without always being able to find a way through the packed and well-organised Syrian defence. The Socceroos continued to struggle even after Mahmoud Al Mawas was sent off for a second bookable offence following a rash challenge on Robbie Kruse.It took until extra time for a winner to be found and, again, it was that man Cahill. The Aussie hero completed his half-century of international goals with yet another header, showing off his famous leap to direct home a looping Kruse cross.Australia will now wait to discover who they will face in that Intercontinental Play-off, with their opponents set to be decided by this evening's CONCACAF qualifying fixtures. The Aussies will face the fourth-placed side in the 'Hex', with USA, Panama or Honduras all potential opponents for them next month.

Source: FIFA