Soccer
Emerton on target for Aus
2008-10-15 15:11
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Brisbane - Blackburn Rovers midfielder Brett Emerton scored twice to help Australia thrash Qatar 4-0 on Wednesday to move to the top of their Asian World Cup qualifying group.
Emerton converted a penalty in the first half and scored midway through the second as the Socceroos completely overwhelmed a lacklustre Qatari outfit.
Australia's other goals came from Everton's Tim Cahill, who notched his 14th international goal in just 29 appearances, and the towering Josh Kennedy with a 76th minute header.
Qatar had opened their qualifying campaign with a 3-0 win over Uzbekistan and a 1-1 draw with Bahrain, but they never looked like matching the more powerful and committed Socceroos.
The match was delayed by 30 minutes after an electrical storm and tropical downpour swept across Brisbane an hour before kickoff, sending the players scurrying from the field during their warm-ups.
However, once the match got underway the Australians dominated the match.
Cahill opened the scoring after only nine minutes and Emerton put them further ahead when Saudi referee Khalil Ibrahim Algahmbi ruled that Qatari defender Abdulla Koni had fouled Cahill in the box.
Emerton then finished off some good lead-up work from Celtic striker Scott McDonald and Kennedy after 76 minutes, before the 1.92 metre tall Kennedy completed the rout when he headed over the top of keeper Abdulaziz Ali Abdulla.
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