Sport
17 December, 2024
The jersey once forgotten, now found
MAREEBA local Wayne Srhoj was gifted with his “forgotten” Under 17 Australia Joeys game jersey at a recent 25-year reunion that looked back on and celebrated Australia’s only FIFA World Cup final appearance.
One of Australia’s greatest achievements in football was the 1999 Under 17 Joeys going all the way to a FIFA World Cup final, only narrowly missing out on international glory when they lost 7-8 to Brazil in a penalty shootout after their match ended 0-0 following extra time.
Amongst the disappointment of the loss, Srhoj unknowingly left his world cup final jersey in the dressing sheds after the game.
In a surprise to all in attendance at the reunion, he was presented with his jersey, 25 years later.
“It was pretty special to get it back after all these years, it was a bit of a touching moment,” Srhoj said.
“To tell you the truth I didn’t even realise I left it in the dressing sheds,” he laughed, “I’d forgotten all about it.”
This is still the furthest an Australian men’s side has progressed at a FIFA World Cup and in the words of 1999 Joeys head coach Les Scheinflug, “nobody, before or since, went into the final, and they did it, and I would say it is still the greatest achievement of football,” he said.
“It’s really special to be a part of that team actually, we probably didn’t realise it at the time just how big of an achievement it was for everyone involved,” Srhoj said.
“After it happened, we all just sort of went our separate ways and got on with things and kept playing, it was only until the reunion it dawned on me just how big it was.”
1999 Joeys World Cup push
The 1999 Joeys came up against “powerhouse” Brazil in their group stage opener match and faced the threat of elimination after they lost 2-1.
But an unlucky start led to an unlikely finals run, as they beat the “European giants” of Germany 2-1 in their next game.
Following this they came up against Africa’s Mali, who they beat 1-0, to not just progress from their group, but top it.
The Joeys then went on to defeat Qatar 1-0 in the quarter finals, before overcoming the USA in a “thrilling” semi-final, eventually winning 7-6 in a penalty shootout after drawing 2-2.
The Joeys did themselves and their nation proud as they made it all the way to the FIFA World Cup final, where they would once again take on the hard-to-beat Brazil side.
After finishing regular time and extra time with the scores lockedup at 0-0, a penalty shootout was required to determine a winner. In the end the Joeys fell agonisingly short, losing 7-8 in penalties.
