The shock goalkeeper switch was a plan hatched weeks in advance.
No, not this one; the other one, in June 2022. When Andrew Redmayne became mainstream famous as the “Grey Wiggle”. When then Socceroos coach Graham Arnold did the unthinkable during the dying embers of extra-time against Peru, and replaced captain Mat Ryan with the bearded friendly giant he believed would win the subsequent penalty shootout to qualify for the Qatar World Cup.
Everybody knows the story about that qualifying playoff, with Redmayne’s distracting dance floor antics and water bottle shithousery, and the decisive dive to palm away Alex Valera’s spot kick. What became clear after the game was that the option had been on the table for weeks and Redmayne knew about that.
“The longer the camp went on the more comfortable I felt with this scenario,” Redmayne said at the time. “I don’t think any of the players knew about it. A few clocked on at half-time because I went through a few drills to keep the eye in. Maty was full of support coming off, and then just before penalties as well. He was pumping me up and getting me ready. Maty didn’t know. He said, ‘All the best mate, this is your time’.”
Four years later, Arnold’s successor Tony Popovic implemented an almost identical surprise substitution in Australia’s 2026 World Cup round-of-32 clash with Egypt. Only this time it wasn’t Ryan hooked for Redmayne, but Patrick Beach hooked for Ryan. The anti-Arnie, if you will. And also because this extra-time substitution featured two other key differences: the Socceroos did not win, and Ryan had no idea what was about to happen.
“As we entered into extra-time I first got word that myself and [Paul] Izzo, the other goalkeeper, were told to stay warm, and probably just before half-time of extra-time I got told that if we weren’t going to make any more subs that right at the end they were going to put me in there,” said a shaken Ryan, who saved none of Egypt’s spot-kicks in the 4-2 shootout loss in Dallas.
“I prepared, of course, as if I was going to play before the game, or as if I was going to be in that scenario, as I always do. But unfortunately [I’m] hurting at the moment because I wasn’t able to produce for myself, for my teammates, and for the country. Hurting would be an understatement.”
Beach was also in the dark.
“I found out at the same time you guys did,” Beach said. “Obviously there was a plan that was put in place, and it wasn’t for us to know about. Our job is just to focus on the game and what’s happening in the moment.
“There was a general decision and discussion that was had, and that’s it. The coaches made a decision and, as far as it goes, Maty and I are here to do the job, whatever works best for the team and that brings the best outcome for our team.
“Of course I would love to be in the penalty shootout but like I said, that’s the decision that the boss has made. There’s no other feelings. I respect him and I respect that decision.
For Popovic’s part, the left-field selection call was merely one from a smorgasbord throughout Australia’s campaign, underscored by so many first XI changes that Saturday’s biggest pre-match revelation was the naming of an unchanged line-up.
Some have worked a treat, while others have been heavily criticised. Beach’s unanticipated usurping of Ryan as first choice between the posts falls into the former category. The 22-year-old produced four head-turning performances as No.1, and his removal felt more startling became it came so soon after a superb reflex save in injury-time to keep the Socceroos in the extra-time reckoning in the first place.
“Patrick is new as a goalkeeper,” Popovic said. “Not just with the national team, but even in club football. We just felt that Maty’s experience would be the difference. In the end it didn’t work out that way, but not because of Maty’s poor judgment or lack of ability – they took critical penalties.”
Of course, the narrative changes completely if Ryan saves a penalty, Harry Souttar and Lucas Herrington don’t miss theirs, and the team progress to the round of 16. The 34-year-old, who recently finished up at La Liga club Levante, has skin in the penalties game and was the protagonist in the Socceroos’ last major-tournament shootout, making two terrific saves against Uzbekistan in the 2019 Asian Cup’s round of 16.
It’s also difficult to forget how, at the 2014 World Cup, coach Louis Van Gaal replaced Dutch keeper Jasper Cillessen with Tim Krul for a successful quarter-final shootout against Costa Rica.
Saturday’s events, however, tell the story of a goalkeeper who was not used once before the 119th minute of this match, and finished the shootout without a touch on the ball. This tale is of a gamble that ultimately backfired.
In this version, it’s easy to point out that Ryan lacks the height of Redmayne (and of Beach). It feels obvious to argue that Beach was in fine form and high on confidence, and thus more ready for the charged energy of the dreaded spot-kick lottery.
And it makes sense to highlight what happened during the break after extra-time, when Egypt’s players huddled around a laptop screen to study videos of Ryan’s recent attempts to save penalty kicks for his club, and conclude such footage of Beach would have been substantially less easy to find.
Jackson Irvine, who scored his spot-kick, said the players “maybe had a little feeling” a goalkeeper switch was in the offing. “But it wasn’t something that was told to the players,” Irvine said. “It gave us a little bit of extra energy as well when he came in.”
Souttar, when asked, was almost speechless. “I don’t really know,” he said. “It was a decision. I don’t really have anything to say on that.”
Get around our World Cup coverage
News, results and expert analysis from the weekend of sport are sent every Monday. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.
