DOHA: Australian match-winner Mitchell Duke dedicated his lone goal in the 1-0 World Cup win over Tunisia to his son and desrribed it it as “a moment I will hold very dear for the rest of my life”.
Duke capitalised on a positive start by Australia when he glance-headed home Craig Goodwin’s cross after 23 minutes.
That sparked an outburst of jubilant celebration from the small contingent of Australia fans behind the goal, which momentarily silenced the hostile and unwavering support for Tunisia.
Knowing defeat would mean an early exit from the World Cup, Australia held on to the narrow lead that keeps alive their hopes of qualifying for the last 16.
Duke said: “I spoke to my son when I got selected for the World Cup.
“You have to have that belief you can score [and] I told my son I would share that moment with him. The celebration was a little ‘J’ for the first letter of his name.
“I haven’t seen it yet but apparently he did it back to me in the stadium. It is a moment I will hold very dear for the rest of my life.”
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