Serbia stunned by New Zealand
Saturday, May 29, 2010
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Serbia 0-1 New Zealand
Shane Smeltz scored the only goal midway through the first half as Radomir Antić's side lost to their fellow FIFA World Cup hopefuls.
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Serbia 0-1 New Zealand
Serbia suffered a surprise 1-0 defeat against fellow FIFA World Cup hopefuls New Zealand with Shane Smeltz's first-half goal proving the difference.
Radomir Antić's side were looking for a confident display in Klagenfurt, Austria, but were instead dealt a decisive blow when Smeltz rounded off a 23rd-minute counterattack by beating right-back Antonio Rukavina before finishing with a low effort past Vladimir Stojković.
Rory Fallon went close to a second goal for New Zealand three minutes later only for Stojković to rescue his side. Zoran Tošić sparked an improved Serbia display after the break but they could not prise open a stubborn All Whites defence.
Serbia will hope for better from their forthcoming friendlies against Poland in Kufstein on Wednesday and Cameroon in Belgrade on 5 June. They then begin their World Cup campaign in South Africa against Ghana on 13 June before facing Germany and Australia in Group D.
