Goal-scoring defender Harry Souttar hailed as Australia’s ‘cheat code’

SYDNEY – Harry Souttar has been hailed as a “cheat code” after the towering 1.98m defender scored his 10th goal for Australia in the 1-0 World Cup qualifying win over Palestine on Nov 21.

The Scotland-born centre-back headed in after 18 minutes from a Craig Goodwin corner to put Australia top of their qualifying group with two wins from two matches.

The goal was virtually a carbon copy of his fourth-minute header in the 7-0 rout of Bangladesh in Melbourne last week, with Goodwin also the provider.

It silenced the thousands of spectators who turned up at the 60,000-seater stadium in Kuwait City for a match that was moved from the West Bank because of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Souttar, who plays for English Championship side Leicester City, made his debut for his national side in 2019, but his 10-goal haul is a record more akin to a forward than a defender.

“To be fair, on set pieces he seems to be a bit of a cheat code,” forward Mitchell Duke said.

“I have got to catch him. I didn’t even have a shot on goal tonight, which is a bit frustrating for attackers.”

Palestine proved far tougher opposition than the Bangladesh side last week.

A deflected Brandon Borrello shot was Australia’s only other clear chance over a nervy 90 minutes.

“It’s a great feeling to be on the score sheet again, scoring for your country is something really special, I never take it for granted,” said the 25-year-old Souttar, who was born in Aberdeen.

“It’s just getting sweeter and sweeter. But I don’t think we were best pleased with our performance, we can play a lot better, but it’s a good lesson for us as a team.”

In the build-up, coach Graham Arnold had described preparations for the match as “quite stressful” against the backdrop of the armed conflict.

The fixture was held at Kuwait’s Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium, where the teams stood for a minute’s silence ahead of the game and the crowd was right behind the world No. 96 Palestinians.

“I’m very proud of the boys after everything off the field that we have gone through, getting this game plan late,” Arnold said after his side’s narrow victory.

“The fact we have got it done is the main thing. You have to give full credit to Palestine.

“We didn’t play our best but the most important thing was the three points.”

Australia will now focus on the Jan 12-Feb 10 Asian Cup, which takes place in Qatar.

Palestine coach Makram Daboub, meanwhile, said that his players were unsettled by the ongoing conflict.

“The players are in the hotel or on the bus most of the time following the news on their phones and communicating with their families,” he said.

“They are in a constant state of anxiety with the continued aggression and war in Palestine.”

AFP, REUTERS