If you’re expecting this article to be about rugby, I’ll have to disappoint you. This is a tale of the most lopsided competitive international football match in history, one with a scoreline so extraordinary that it has taken on its own urban legend to the extent that the first result Google returns for the search term ‘31-0’ is a Wikipedia article pertaining to the day in April 2001 that American Samoa made worldwi to FIFA only giving Oceania a play-off berth in qualification for the finals, rather than one automatic passage. As if the Australians needed any more of an advantage, they got one in the form of a customs oversight which restricted all but one of the American Samoa senior squad from travelling; as the vast majority of the squad held passports for Samoa, a sovereign state with its own FIFA affiliation, they were ineligible to feature. Goalkeeper Nicky Salapu had the dubious honour of being permitted to travel. Also, with most of the nation’s under-20 squad in the middle of school examinations, coach Tunoa Lui was forced to draft in numerous teenage players, including some as young as 15. The average age of his starting lineup was 18. Australia’s starting XI, which omitted several regulars, still contained players from the English and Scottish Premier League.On 11 April 2001, the 20,000-capacity International Sports Stadium at Coffs Harbour in New South Wales was about to witness history. No official attendance was recorded, but reports cited an estimated turnout of 3,000 on this Wednesday evening.
0-10 minutes: Australia 0-0 American Samoa
If Lui had set his players a target of getting to the 10-minute mark on level terms, they achieved it thanks to the heroics of Salapu in goal. The onslaught was inevitable and instant but he caught the eye with a series of excellent saves. Perhaps Australia wouldn’t be matching their 22-goal haul from the Tonga game after all.
10-20 minutes: Australia 6-0 American Samoa
Alas, the dam would burst in unforgiving fashion once Con Boutsianis broke the deadlock in the 10th minute. Three goals in as many minutes from Archie Thompson, David Zdrilic and Aurelio Vidmar followed, with a quickfire double from Tony Popovic completing a nine-minute spell in which Frank Farina’s men went from 0-0 to 6-0.
20-30 minutes: Australia 11-0 American Samoa
The next five Australian goals came like clockwork, with two-minute intervals between each. By the 27th minute, Zdrilic and Thompson completed their hat-tricks to nudge the Socceroos into double figures, with the latter netting his fourth of the night just before the half-hour. Australia were halfway to matching the scoreline against Tonga with two-thirds of the match still to play.
30-45 minutes: Australia 16-0 American Samoa
Australia netted five more goals before half-time, with four of them coming from Thompson, who had eight in the first half alone. Zdrilic got his fourth of the game on 33 minutes with the goal that made it 13-0. If there was a moral victory to be claimed for American Samoa, it was the nine-minute spell between 33 and 42 in which they only conceded once.
45-55 minutes: Australia 19-0 American Samoa
Popovic and Vidmar, two of Australia’s Europe-based contingent, were given the second half off, although with this being a World Cup qualifier, each team was permitted just three substitutions, depriving Farina of the chance to empty the bench as he would most likely have done in a friendly.Boutsianis, whose goal began the scoring spree, also got the first goal after half-time, with Simon Colosimo and interval sub Fausto de Amicis adding their names to the scoresheet. For Colosimo, it was a redemptive moment; his career is best remembered for a horrendous injury he sustained in a game against Manchester United during the Red Devils’ pre-season Australian tour in 1999 after a reckless challenge from Andy Cole.
55-65 minutes: Australia 23-0 American Samoa
Thompson made it 20-0 on 56 minutes, with Zdrilic adding another just before the hour mark. Thompson soon reached double figures with his individual tally and, when he struck in the 65th minute with his 11th of the game, the goal ensured that the 22-0 record against Tonga would be surpassed. In the space of approximately 50 hours, Australia had twice broken the record for the largest ever victory in FIFA World Cup qualification.
65-80 minutes: Australia 25-0 American Samoa
The beleaguered visitors toughed out a 15-minute spell beyond the midway point of the second half in which they limited Australia to two goals. Both were scored by Zdrilic, with a 12-minute interlude between the two the longest that American Samoa would go without conceding in this match.
80-90 minutes: Australia 31-0 American Samoa
Following that comparatively lean spell for Australia, they would cut loose with another six goals in the final 10 minutes. Aurelio Vidmar and Colosimo both got their second of the game before Boutsianis became the third player to net a hat-trick.
Either side of two more goals for Thompson, which left him with an individual world record of 13 goals in an international match, came a rare highlight – a shot from American Samoa. It took 86 minutes, but at least it ensured that they avoided a zero in the shots column of the stats section. It was on target, too, giving Australian goalkeeper Michael Petkovic some overdue activity.
The final punishment was meted out by Zdrilic making it 31-0 in the final minute of normal time. He ended the match with eight goals, the second most scored by one player in a single senior international since World War I.
Such was the tidal wave of goals that the stadium scoreboard and official statistician were not in sync. The stadium displayed 32-0 and credited Thompson with 14 goals, but the statistician had 31-0 and 13 respectively, the latter count verified by the referee’s official report.
I'm sure you are surprised how it could have happened, and to be frank am still lost.
Amazing
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