Luke Remington scored a superb last minute equaliser to earn the Qantas Joeys a 1-1 draw with Denmark in their final Group F match of the FIFA U-17 World Cup Mexico at Estadio Corregidora, Queretaro.
The draw meant that Qantas Joeys finished the group in third place and will play Uzbekistan in the Round of 16 match on Wednesday (local time).
The match was replayed after heavy downpour and lightning forced the officials to suspend the earlier match, which kicked off the day before, just 25 minutes into the game.
Denmark looked to have the game in the bag after Sorenson Rochester's 35th minute goal gave Denmark the advantage but a moment of individual brilliance from Remington in the 89th minute ensured the share of the spoils.
Going into the match, the Qantas Joeys knew that they had to get a result or lose by less than a three goal margin to progress to the next round after Brazil and Côte d'Ivoire had drawn 3-3 on Sunday in the other group match.
After the match (coach) Jan Versleijen was relieved that his team achieved a result from the match.
"You don't make the next round just because of your last match, but because of the previous results as well. It wasn't our greatest ever performance against Côte d'Ivoire. The first half against Brazil was good, but we lost.
"We knew Denmark had to score three goals today. Our intention was to control the match, but apart from the first 20 minutes, we didn't succeed. Obviously, the red card made it even harder.
"Paul Izzo made some good saves and Denmark had a lot of chances but the luck was on our side and once we scored near the end you know your qualification for the next round is certain.
"Denmark had lots of chances, but fortune favoured us today. We'll have to play better in our next match, because we can't play like that again. That's what we'll work on in the next two days," concluded Versleijen.
The Qantas Joeys will next play Uzbekistan at Torreon in the second stage, Round of 16, of the FIFA U-17 World Cup Mexico on Wednesday, 29 June. (6 am AEST, Thursday 30 June).
