Green and Golden years – The ’74 Socceroos v East Germany

The Socceroos made their World Cup finals debut against East Germany in 1974. Watch the classic footage...

The Socceroos made their World Cup finals debut against East Germany in 1974. Watch the classic footage...

1974 FIFA World Cup - Australia v East Germany Friday, 14 June 1974 Volksparkstadion, Hamburg Attendance: approximately 15 800 Australia 0 - East Germany 2

After a nail-biting qualification process, in which the Socceroos had to defeat South Korea over a three-leg decider, Australia finally won a spot at the World Cup finals.

The tournament, held in what was then West Germany, was a tough debut for the Aussies, who were drawn against East Germany, West Germany and Chile in Group A.

History and status were not on the Australians- side, but they did receive some surprise support from the West Germany fans in the first game against East Germany.

Despite the pre-match criticism of the side, the Socceroos put in a disciplined and competitive performance, as Rale Rasic-s men kept their highly regarded opponents scoreless for nearly an hour.

The game plan collapsed however, with Colin Curran-s still-disputed own goal in the 58th minute. That cracked the resolve of the Socceroos and opened the door for the Germans, who made it 2-0 through Joachim Streich on 72 minutes.

The Socceroos might not have won the game but they won the respect of their opponents and the sniffy European press, with one West German newspaper even printing an apology for earlier comments about the “no-hope” Australians.

It was an inauspicious debut for the finals and Australian fans had to wait far too long to see the Socceroos put it to bed - when the returned to Germany and the World Cup 32 years later.

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