This week marked the fifty-year anniversary of Australia’s first appearance at the FIFA World Cup Finals.

The achievements of this squad are legendary – a group comprised of amateur players who qualified against the odds to take their place among the top sixteen teams in the world.

Drawing both East and West Germany in the group stage was always going to be a tough ask, and the Socceroos lost both matches – after putting up a serious fight. The third and final game was against Chile, whom the underdogs managed to hold to a 0-0 draw.

No one would have thought at the time that 32 years would pass before Australia would make their next appearance at the World Cup Finals.

Over the past week, Football Australia have been releasing some great articles and videos about the ’74 Socceroos, such as the team profile from the official tournament programme, as seen below.

Perhaps second only to Bradman’s ‘1948 Invincibles’ – the 1974 Socceroos will forever hold their place among the giants of Australian sport.

Link below to the brilliant documentary on the Football Australia YouTube Channel.

Photos courtesy of Football Australia and other online sources.