Qantas Olyroos defeated Vietnam in Hanoi

Qantas Olyroos bounce back to defeat Vietnam on their own patch

The Qantas Olyroos recorded a 2-0 win over Vietnam in their second match of the Four Nations International Tournament in Hanoi courtesy of first-half goals to Jason Hoffman and Tahj Minniecon.

Although originally scheduled to meet the Kuwait U-23 national team, a late fixture change saw the Qantas Olyroos line-up against the host nation-s senior national team in front of a vocal home crowd.

The Qantas Olyroos started the match at a frenetic pace, dominating possession and came close to scoring in the 4th minute when Mitch Nichols had his shot from inside the box well saved by the Vietnamese goalkeeper Duong Hong Son.

The first goal of the match was scored in the 19th minute after Tahj Minniecon dribbled around two defenders into the box and then passed to Nichols. Nichols then set-up Jason Hoffman who finished the move by slotting the ball into the goal.

The Qantas Olyroos lead was doubled in the 36th minute following a Vietnam free kick deep in the Australian defensive third. Nichols was on hand again to take advantage of the subsequent clearance and played a long pass to Minniecon on the right side who took full advantage of his one-on-one opportunity against the Vietnam goalkeeper.

The second half saw a rise in the tempo of the game as Vietnam lifted their work rate creating a number of good scoring chances in their bid to reduce the deficit. The Qantas Olyroos held out their hosts to record a well deserved victory.

After the match Qantas Olyroos Head Coach Aurelio Vidmar was much happier with the result and his team-s performance.

“In Monday-s match we didn-t capitalise on the chances we created. Tonight we again created plenty of chances and in the first half we put away two very good goals,” said Vidmar.

“We played very well against a quality opponent and were rewarded for dominating the game.

“The players took on board the work they needed to do in the front third and executed the plan really well.

“I was extremely happy with the work rate of the players at the front and the back.,” concluded Vidmar

In the other match of the tournament, DPR Korea defeated Kuwait 1-0 with An Chol Hyok scoring from the penalty spot. The win takes DPR Korea to the top of the table on 6 points, with Vietnam and Australia on 3 points and Kuwait on 0 points.

The Qantas Olyroos will meet Kuwait in their final match of the tournament on Friday evening.

Match Details

Qantas Olyroos 2 (Jason Hoffman 19-, Tahj Minniecon 36-)

Vietnam 0

My Dinh Stadium, Hanoi

Qantas Olyroos line up: Andrew Redmayne (gk), Luke DeVere, Matt Jurman, Sebasation Ryall, Daniel Mullen, Tahj Minniecon (Scott Neville 66-), Oliver Bozanic (Diogo Ferreira 72-), Jason Hoffman (Mirjan Pavlovic 66-), James Brown (Isaka Cernak 66-), Mitch Nichols (Chris Payne 83-), Marko Jesic.

Substitutes Not Used: Jerrad Tyson, Matthew Foschini, Antony Golec Yellow Cards: Daniel Mullen 8- Marko Jesic 35-, Matt Jurman53-