It's required 22 games, taken 29 months and over 250,000 kilometres but Australia finally reached their final destination; the 2018 World Cup in Russia. We might not have any strikers and Timmy Cahill is pushing 40 but we made it! Hope New Zealand make it thru tonight ................... All the best, Kiwi. Mile Jedinak celebrates 'special' night after Australia seal World Cup spot... but head coach Ange Postecoglou is still unsure on his future: 'I'm going to make sure I enjoy this first' Mile Jedinak scored a hat-trick to secure Australia's World Cup qualification The victory secured their fourth consecutive appearance at the tournament Australia had to complete 22 matches over a 29 month period to qualify Jedinak claimed Australia are 'very grateful' to be returning to the finals Head coach Ange Postecoglou insisted he hasn't made a decision on his future By Jaime Wright For Mailonline PUBLISHED: 01:15 AEDT, 16 November 2017 | UPDATED: 03:21 AEDT, 16 November 2017 Mile Jedinak celebrated a golden night in Sydney as Australia secured their World Cup place on Wednesday, but he insisted they always expected it to be tough. It took 22 matches over a period of 29 months for Australia to achieve their end goal of World Cup qualification, which Jedinak made sure of as he stole the plaudits with an unorthodox hat-trick. The Australia captain netted a second-half treble to complete a 3-1 second leg victory in the phase of their World Cup qualification, courtesy of a deflected free kick and two penalties. please log in to view this image +6 Tim Cahill takes to Instagram to celebrate qualification for next summer's World Cup please log in to view this image +6 Mile Jedinak celebrates scoring his hat-trick to secure Australia's place in Russia The Australians could celebrate their fourth straight - and fifth in total - admission into the finals, a statistic Jedinak is extremely proud of. 'It's unreal,' Jedinak said. 'We knew it was always going to be a difficult qualifying campaign but this makes it very, very special. 'It's been a tough two-and-a-half years to get to this point but we did it. We're very grateful we're going to another World Cup.' Honduras also missed a chance to extend their stay among the world's best nations, missing out on their third successive finals after failing to follow up last week's goalless draw in the first leg. please log in to view this image +6 The Australia skipper scored two penalties and a deflected free-kick to secure qualification please log in to view this image +6 Jedinak roars with Australian pride as he leads his team-mates to a 3-1 victory on Wednesday please log in to view this image +6 Head coach Ange Postecoglou celebrates with Jedinak despite uncertainties about his future Despite their achievement, it is unclear whether head coach Ange Postecoglou will be on the plane to Russia, with the manager claiming he was considering stepping down as the national team coach. 'Tonight is just about enjoying it, the Australia boss said. 'What happens beyond here can be picked up tomorrow. 'I'll sit down with the powers that be. Obviously it's important that the planning goes ahead. It won't take too long, but I'm going to make sure I enjoy this first.' Former captain Tim Cahill returned from an ankle injury that saw him miss the first leg, but he too remains unsure if he can make the trip to Eastern Europe as he insisted he needed more game time to qualify for the squad. 'I've got to make some big decisions on the level of where I'm playing at and what I'm going to do,' Cahill said. 'I need game time.' please log in to view this image +6 And described qualifying for their fourth straight World Cup tournament as 'special' Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...brates-World-Cup-admission.html#ixzz4yWzrjXWo Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
Nice one Aussie, here’s hoping you grace the tournament and add to your total of wins in the finals. One win takes it up by 50%! Just don’t get drawn in a group with England. I couldn’t bear the humiliation. Same goes for Kiwi.
Thanks sb, Can’t see us doing anything more without any recognised strikers but happy to be there. Didn’t want to join Italy playing bocce when the World Cup is on.
Nah ................ he'll go off with a sick note from mother. Very good player but in the same mold as a Mr H. Kewell.
