Australia
Today's Talking Points
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1Australia's tournament finished in the Round of 32 — a 1-1 draw with Egypt in Dallas on July 3 that went to penalties, where Egypt won 4-2. A cruel way to go: a game that could easily have gone either way, decided by a shootout.
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2The breakout story was 20-year-old winger Nestory Irankunda, who became Australia's youngest-ever World Cup goalscorer with a strike against Turkey. Born in Tanzania to Burundian refugee parents and raised in Adelaide, his story is as good as his finishing.
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3Reaching the Round of 32 at all was the platform Australia needed — they finished runners-up in their group to get there, a solid step for a team that's historically had to scrap for every point at this level.
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4Irankunda is the name for the file — a Watford winger with genuine pace already being talked about as the face of the next Socceroos generation. Say it right and you'll out-fan most casuals in the room.
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5This was meant to be a building tournament for Australia, and on that score it delivered — a penalty shootout exit stings, but a teenage breakout star plus a group-stage runners-up finish is more than plenty of nations get. The next cycle looks genuinely promising.
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Top thing to say down the pub
Australia lose on penalties to Egypt after a game that could've gone either way — but Nestory Irankunda, twenty years old, becoming their youngest-ever World Cup scorer is the story to actually remember from this one.
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Avoid saying
Any cricket comparison — wrong sport, wrong tournament, and it tells everyone in the room you reached for the only Australian sports reference you had.