澳大利亚第二轮1:1平加纳: Pride restored in jersey despite draw. HARRY KEWELL couldn't save Australia. Brett Holman almost did. But almost was never going to be enough. The Socceroos now need a miracle, or they'll be going home at the end of the week. Tough justice, perhaps, on a picture perfect afternoon in Rustenburg. There was guts, and even some hope of glory, against the Black Stars. But the handicap(不利条件, 不利因素, 障碍a circumstance that makes progress or success difficult a criminal conviction is a handicap and a label that may stick forever刑事判决是一个不利因素, 可能成为身上一张永远揭不掉的标签 ) of playing a man short for two-thirds of the game(指Harry Kewell上半场被sent off) was too much for an old side against the tournament's youngest. Kewell will be the talking point话题论题, 焦掉, but not for the reasons he was hoping. His first half dismissal changed everything, leaving Australia with nothing. Well not quite nothing. A win against Serbia, and a Ghana victory over Germany, and the Socceroos could still sneak through. Whether they do or not, they have at least redeemed(挽回颜面 (redeem oneself)do something that compensates for poor past performance or behaviour(对过去的拙劣表现或行为)弥补, 补救 Australia redeemed themselves by dismissing India for 153 澳大利亚队以153分迫使印度板球队退场, 挽回了颜面) themselves after their inept(笨拙荒谬的, 不称职无能的) capitulation屈服 against the Germans. There was passion, genuine passion. There was leadership, real leadership, from Lucas Neill and Mark Schwarzer. There was encouragement for the future in the contributions of Carl Valeri and Holman. Even Pim Verbeek got in on the act. Throwing caution to the wind(丢到九霄云外) by going two up front for the last half an hour. It was exciting, exhilarating令人兴奋的 and, yes, entertaining. Australia could even have won it, and Luke Wilkshire(终场前面对单刀射失) will be having nightmares about squandering(1. 浪费挥霍, 乱花 2. allow (an opportunity) to pass or be lost 失去(机会) the team squandered several good scoring chances那支球队浪费了好几次得分机会 ) a one-on-one(单刀机会). World Cups, and even careers, are defined by such moments. Wilkshire is too good a player to let it get him down. If this week proves to be our last, lingering, look at so-called 'Golden Generation' they have given themselves the chance to go out with dignity. Points would be nicer, but pride is important too. More of the same against Serbia, and you never know. They'll still need a helping hand from Ghana, but stranger things have happened. Australia dominating for most of the second half, Ghana retreating against the onslaught. Now everything's balanced on a knife edge, and the Socceroos will have to negotiate([with obj.]find a way over or through (an obstacle or difficult path)顺利通过(难以通过的路); 成功地越过(障碍) there was a puddle to be negotiated ) their final fling without Kewell. It's impossible not to feel desperately sad for Kewell, a victim of circumstance as much as anything else. On the post(球门柱), protecting the goal. Kewell was in the wrong place at the wrong time as Andre Ayew's cutback fell to Jonathan Mensah, and his shot was heading goalward, right where Kewell was standing. An imperceptible细微的, 难以察觉的 movement of the arm, probably instinctive本能的, but nonetheless尽管如此, 但是 enough to block the ball. A handball on the line. Definite penalty. Red card? Italian referee Roberto Rosetti saw enough intent(故意, 故意手球就要罚出场). Either way, Kewell's World Cup ended almost as quickly as it began. A solid 24-minute contribution as the lone target man, but if there was to be anything more substantial, we'll never know. What we do know is the incident will be analysed endlessly, and no doubt - like in 2006 - a nation will feel aggrieved(受委屈的, 愤愤不平的, 受冤枉的). What we have to learn is to deal with it. Every team faces adversity, or plain bad luck仅仅是坏运气. Ghana, too. Australia's goal came after a goalkeeping howler((尤指言谈或行文中的)愚蠢的错), underlining that these things tend to even out(平衡). What we don't want is to leave South Africa with a reputation as whingers(抱怨不断的人, 牢骚满腹的人 (whingeing)[no obj.]complain persistently and in a peevish or irritating way老抱怨, 不断发牢骚 stop whingeing and get on with it!别发牢骚了, 继续做事吧). Better to depart acknowledging the obvious: We simply haven't been good enough. 相关报道: Socceroos will 'fight to the end' If fighting spirit战斗精神 counts for anything(count for 有价值, 有重要性 For him fame does not count for much在他看来, 出名算不了什么 He seems to count for too much in our company在我们公司里, 他似乎是个举足轻重的人物), Australia's chances of progress beyond the group phase at the World Cup are definitely alive. The Socceroos, reduced to 10 men in Rustenburg for 65 minutes after Harry Kewell's dubious red card, gave a lion-hearted勇猛异常的, 雄心壮志的 effort against Ghana which ended 1-1 but very nearly delivered a famous against the odds逆境而上 victory. The Australian performance was everything the debacle(溃败, 溃逃, 惨败) in Durban was not. It was spirited, it was daring, it was wholehearted. Despite turning in上交, 奉献 an inspirational effort against a Ghanaian team which gave as good as it got in an exhilarating match, the cold fact残酷的现实 remains that Australia lies at the bottom of the group with just one point from two games. Progress depends as much on the result in the other final day group match as it does on Australia's capacity能力 to toss掀翻 the Serbs. "The reaction and the spirit epitomises(成为...的缩影, 象征体现) what it means to be Australian. We'll fight to the end." Skipper Neill is not daunted气馁, 吓坏, 威吓 by the challenge. "We've got two bites at the cherry (a bite at/of the cherry (also a second/another bite at/of the cherry) an opportunity to do sth, or a second attempt at doing sth, especially sth you have failed to do earlier 做某事的机会, 另一次机会 They all wanted a bite of the cherry他们都想得到这个机会 We’ve lost that contract with the German firm and we probably won’t get another bite at the cherry我们失去了与德国公司的合同, 很难再有另一次机会了 )now, two different ways we can qualify from this group(两种方式可以从此组出线). If Ghana beat Germany, and we win by any score(任何比分赢都行), we're through," he said. "And if Germany really beat Ghana and we beat Serbia convincingly(有信服力的, 大比分的), we're still in it. We believe that and when there's hope, and while we stay positive, positive things happen to positive people." Say what you like about the team, but don't say they didn't give it a red hot go. He plainly felt and shared the hurt of the fans. Neill is a deeply patriotic captain who takes his leadership role seriously. On this occasion, he told his team-mates frankly what he expected. "I got the guys together in the change room and told them it was a defining moment for Australian soccer history, Australia's football history in the World Cup," he said. "Today could determine a successful or a failure campaign. We asked for spirit. We got it in abundance." The Socceroos skipper believes the vocal support of the growing legions军团, 大量众多 of travelling supporters should not be underestimated as a force driving the side. "Two games in a row we've had a phenomenal amount of Australian supporters in the crowd," he said. "Australia might only be 20 million people but you can't call us minnows 一种小鱼 小虾米, 微不足道的人 when it comes to football." "We bring seas of fans, you know, anywhere in the world and we are no longer a small team in the world of football and people need to recognise that." 另一个报道: Sorry end to Kewell's World Cup. IT was the briefest of interludes and also the most painful, a 25-minute serving of Harry Kewell which all Australians will find difficult to swallow难以接受, 难以下咽. But it all ended in remorse, recrimination and ruin for Australia's fading prince with a red card besmirching what could turn out be his last ever act at a World Cup. The saviour became the sinner救世主变成了罪人 - albeit in the harshest of circumstances - as a gallant Australia's World Cup hopes were pushed to the brink of extinction熄灭 by their 1-1 draw with the Black Stars. More used to breaking hearts at the other end of the field, Kewell was back on his own goal-line this time, flicking out his right out just a fraction(右胳膊只是伸了一点点) to prevent Jonathan Mensas vicious drive from 10 metres flying past him as Ghana sought to cancel out平衡抵消掉 Brett Holmans 11th-minute opener for a ferocious and focused Australia. Time seemed to stand still时间静止, and disbelief不相信, 难以置信 was writ large on the face of the 31-year-old and his traumatised teammates, as Italian referee Roberto Rosetti brandished a red card in his direction without so much as甚至于 a moment's hesitation. After long debate with the official and much hand-wringing consternation and gesticulating, Kewell reluctantly departed from the arena amid boos from the massed ranks of Australian fans at Rustenburg's Royal Bafokeng Stadium. It was bad enough to see him go, worse still that the resulting penalty provided Asamoah Gyan with Ghana's equaliser. And it was the cruellest of ends to a World Cup since Kewell, who has suffered more than his fare share of angst担忧, emerged on crutches before Australia's 1-0 loss to eventual champions Italy back in 2006 with a badly infected toe. He will now miss Thursday morning's match with Serbia because of his automatic one match suspension. No doubt, the unwanted irony of being marched by an Italian referee will not have been lost on him. Before Rosetti's summary execution草率处决, Kewell had burned brightly. If ever there was a man galvanised by indignation, pride and purpose it was he as Kewell set about reminding us all why he is the most discussed and documented player ever to wear the green and gold. His mere presence, on as a starter after medical staff gave his problematic groin a tick, galvanised激起某人行动起来 an Australian team brimming with满溢的 purpose and bristling with desire to prove that their World Cup blood had not yet run dry. Darting and dangerous from the kick-off, Kewell showed at 31 there is still some oomph under the hood, proving the point after just three minutes as he chased down emergency centre-back Lee Addy and almost forcing a penalty as the panicky stopper appeared to barrel him over in the box. It was like being transported in a time machine back 10 years and watching the Kewell of old, rather than the old Kewell, as he burst out of the blocks in symmetry with his re-energised teammates in a roving role at the pointy end of Australia's attack. He harried and hustled the Ghanaians, forcing errors deep in their own territory before the curtain prematurely过早的 came down to plunge him into darkness让他陷入一片黑暗.
Tim Cahill consoles安慰 Luke Wilkshire after costly miss against Ghana: LUKE Wilkshire was a study in desolation after the miss which has left Australia's World Cup hopes on the ropes. Suspended停赛的 team-mate Tim Cahill draped a consoling arm(用胳膊搂着脖子, 所以说垂着一个胳膊) over the devastated Aussie. Six days earlier it was Cahill welling up(come up (as of feelings and thoughts, or other ephemeral things); "Strong emotions welled up";) after his red card in the 4-0 loss to Germany, but at Rustenberg's Royal Bafokeng Stadium it was Wilkshire's turn to feel the sting of raw emotion ( 1. 刺痛灼痛 I felt the sting of the cold, bitter air我感到寒风刺骨 2. (informal)a carefully planned operation, typically one involving deception (非正式)精心策划的行动(尤指骗局、圈套) five blackmailers were jailed last week after they were snared陷阱圈套 in a police sting五个敲诈勒索者落入了警察的圈套, 上个星期被送进了监狱 ) at the final whistle. He knew he had fluffed(squander 1. 绒毛 2. 失误, 出错 (informal)fail to perform or accomplish (something) successfully or well (used especially in a sporting or acting context) (非正式)(尤指体育、表演)出错, 失误 the extra fluffed his only line临时演员把他惟一的一句台词念错了) a golden opportunity(绝佳的机会) for his 10-man team to steal a magnificent victory in the 72nd minute. A concerned Cahill, who will return for Australia's destiny duel against Serbia on Wednesday in Nelspruit, was the first to comfort Wilkshire in his moment of bitter reflection. Recovering his composure later恢复冷静, the Russia-based right-back scolded himself for blowing it after he had been superbly set free inside the Ghana penalty area by substitute Scott Chipperfield's piercing pass. It could and should have been his third goal in 44 appearances for his country. Instead, he dallied a little too long, allowing goalkeeper Richard Kingston to smother his shot, with the ball bobbling up for Josh Kennedy to compound加重恶化 the error with a miscued撞歪的 shot that Kingson was able to gather. Acknowledging that a miracle is now needed for the Socceroos to move in the last 16 - most pointedly直截了当的 a win over Serbia on Wednesday and a loss for Germany against Ghana among other unlikely permutations数字排列(指靠净胜球数) - Wilkshire couldn't hide his dismay, admitting: "It was unfortunate we couldn't get the goal. I had a huge chance and I am so disappointed I didn't make the most of it. "Maybe I thought I had more time that I did. It was a spur of the moment thing and it just didn't happen for me the way it should have. "I'm gutted by the miss. You wait for those moments in a game and I missed a big opportunity for the team, and that's the worst thing." But Wilkshire is remaining positive. "While there is a mathematical chance we will fight to the bitter end, just as we always do," he added. "It would be great if Ghana could go out and beat the Germans. "All we can do is go out and get the better of Serbia and give ourselves a fighting chance. We feel we can do that because there is incredible spirit in this team, as we showed by taking it to Ghana with 10 men for nearly 70 minutes. "We know we weren't good enough against Germany but we showed the real Australia today." Wilskhire was further aggravated by the controversial dismissal of Harry Kewell after just 25 minutes, adding: "It was plain for anybody to see that Harry couldn't move his arm and couldn't get out of the way of the ball, unless he could miraculously remove his right arm from his body."
