It was John Aloisi’s penalty scored in the Socceroos’ famous win over Uruguay in November, 2005 which ended Australia’s 32-year absence from the FIFA Men’s World Cup finals.
But six months later, en route to Germany in 2006, his hopes of featuring in the tournament hung precariously in the balance.
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Aloisi’s shoot-out heroics against Uruguay made him a household name across the country in late 2005. He would ultimately go on to enhance his legendary status by playing a key role in what was to follow at the 2006 World Cup – but, not before an injury scare which threatened to curtail his selection in head coach Guus Hiddink’s Socceroos squad.
On the way to a pre-tournament training camp in the Netherlands Aloisi’s race against the clock ticked into the 11th hour.
“In the lead-up to the World Cup I tore my plantar fascia, which is just underneath your foot,” Aloisi says.
The Socceroos legend is this week’s star on A-Leagues All Access, KEEPUP’s weekly docuseries, which returns on Thursday, January 26 following a break over the festive season.
And it returns with a bang, as Aloisi – now head coach of Isuzu UTE A-League club Western United – reflects on Socceroos stardom, transitioning into coaching, and a life-threatening heart condition overcome prior to orchestrating Western’s 2021-22 Championship triumph.
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But before it all came that trip to the Netherlands in mid-2006, where Aloisi’s World Cup hopes were in the balance.
“I remember the bus trip, I was just lying in the back virtually crying. I had probably about a month to get right for the World Cup,” he says.
“Guus Hiddink said: ‘If you’re not training by the time we get to Holland, I can’t take you.’
“I was touch and go, whether it was going to be alright. But luckily enough I got through it and was able to train fully in Holland, and then ready for the World Cup.”
The Socceroos would go on to excel in Germany, winning the nation’s very first game at a Men’s World Cup and escaping their group, before falling to eventual champions Italy in the Round of 16.
The win that sent the nation on that historic run came against Japan in Kaiserslautern. By now the story is one of legend, with the Socceroos trailing 1-0 at the 83rd-minute mark before a five-minute Tim Cahill brace turned it all around.
Then came Aloisi who, like against Uruguay, was summoned off the bench to work his magic.
A 90th-minute strike sealed the deal, and made history for Australia. Once again, Aloisi had produced an iconic moment in green and gold.
“The Japan game, that was our World Cup final,” Aloisi adds. “If we didn’t win that game, we probably weren’t going to get through the group.
“I was able to score the third that sealed it. To score in a World Cup, and to win the first game for Australia at a World Cup, you can’t get better than that.”
Produced by KEEPUP Studios and JAMTV, each new episode of the docuseries will debut on Thursday at 7:30pm AEDT on 10 Play, KEEPUP.COM.AU, the KEEPUP app. This week, it will be viewable on KEEPUP on YouTube from 9pm AEDT, after the Big Blue. It will be available on Australia’s fastest growing streaming service, Paramount+, and will then be broadcast on 10 Bold at 2:00pm AEDT on Saturday afternoons as an appetiser for the evening’s Isuzu UTE A-League Men game on the same channel.