Socceroos World Cup qualifiers LIVE: Australia host Palestine in Perth

Take away the contention of the penalty and there’s a lot to be happy about as a Socceroos supporter.

There have been strong performances all over the park, with standouts from Keanu Baccus, Martin Boyle, Adam Taggart and Alessandro Circati.

The scoreline gives the idea that Palestine haven’t been in the game which isn’t quite true, they have looked dangerous on the counterattack, but real chances in the final third have been very few and far between.

Expect some movement from both benches in the second half.

This is certainly a far more enjoyable game than the dirge in Dhaka.

Australia 3 Palestine 0 after first half

Jackson Irvine celebratesCredit: Getty Images

What a beautiful ball through ball from Jackson Irvine to Martin Boyle, who gets his second assist for Kusini Yengi to slot for his second goal.

The Palestine bench are furious wondering whether Boyle was offside. It looked onside, but it doesn’t help placate the coaches who also can feel hard done by from the early Yengi penalty.

Boyle has been outstanding tonight and is sending a reminder to Edinburgh and Hibernian Football Club about what a talent he is.

Australia 3 Palestine 0 after 43 minutes

Kusini Yengi celebrates after his second goalCredit: Getty Images

They may be 2-0 down, but the Palestine fans are absolutely making themselves heard tonight in Perth.

Their team definitely have more chances in them, but they could be few and far between.

With both Australia and Palestine already through to the next stage of qualification, it is the perfect opportunity for both coaches to experiment.

Graham Arnold will be very pleased with the first half performance from Alessandro Circati only in his second cap in front of his hometown fans, the Parma player looks extremely assured at the back and will be in Socceroos colours for a long time to come.

Adam Taggart has also impressed for Australia beyond his goal with some great pressure from the front.

Australia 2 Palestine 0 after 39 minutes

Palestine are a team that are renowned for their stubborn defence and it seems that the early penalty has knocked a fair bit of steam out of them after a bright start in Perth.

Australia are starving them of position, allowing them with scraps of counterattacks providing a glimpse of what is possible. There is absolutely pace in the Palestine team and they are not out of it.

Graham Arnold will definitely be happy with his new-look team so far.

Australia 2 Palestine 0 after 30 minutes

Adam Taggart celebrates in front of his home fans in PerthCredit: Getty Images

There’s the first international goal for Perth’s Adam Taggart.

The ball was well won by Mathew Leckie, Martin Boyle takes the ball and squares it perfectly for Taggart who delights in scoring in front of his home fans at a stadium he knows very well.

Boyle who has been the feature of some speculation about his future at Hibernian in Scotland has been busy tonight, with a return to the A League not out of the question.

Australia 2 Palestine 0 after 26 minutes

Keanu Baccus controls the ballCredit: Getty Images

In a Socceroos team filled with Perth players, Adam Taggart is gifted with a half chance after some Palestine confusion in defence, but spurns it in front of his local fans.

Australia are looking very comfortable in possession so far and you sense a lot more chances coming.

The curse of the blog writer, there is Palestine’s best chance after a flowing counter attack, the ball fell to Mohammed Rashid who snatches at the ball. There is definitely pace in the channel for Palestine and they look dangerous on the break.

Australia 1 Palestine 0 after 15 minutes

Despite the early lead, this is a significant step up in quality in opposition for the Socceroos as expected.

Palestine have not been able to play a home game since 2019 and are a formidable opponent, also joining the Socceroos in the third phase of qualifying.

The Socceroos are already enjoying the superior surface in Perth, it’s good to be home for the Socceroos so far.

Australia 1-0 Palestine after 10 minutes

Kusini Yengi of the Socceroo celebrates after scoring a penaltyCredit: Getty Images

There’s a penalty for the Socceroos.

Yasser Hamid tries to pull away but collides with Aziz Behich.

It seems very harsh on Hamid, but the penalty is given.

Portsmouth’s Kusini Yengi was very quick to pick up the ball and drills it perfectly to the left of the goal.

It was against the run of play with Palestine looking extremely comfortable on the ball.

Australia 1 Palestine 0 after 5 minutes

After a rousing set of anthems from both teams and the mascots in Perth, we have kicked off.

Coach Graham Arnold is in Perth for the first time and will be looking for his team to put in an improved performance from Dhaka. Let’s see what the Socceroos have got.

It’s looking like a decent crowd in Perth with a lot of Palestine flags on display from fans.

The Socceroos will be very happy to be back home in Perth playing on a nice deck that should definitely allow Jackson Irvine to unlock this Palestine defence.

It’s a dead rubber to some, but the perfect opportunity for the Socceroos to build more squad depth ahead of the business end of World Cup qualification.

We will be back with you for kick off..