Two cracking goals from former Sydney FC youth Kerem Bulut gave Australia  a 2-1 lead and the Young Roos looked good to hold on for a win at half-time.

But after the Korean coach made three change in the first 37 minutes, Korea came out looking for a win in the second half.

Il Gwan got his second to level the scores - but the match seemed to be heading for extra time until a looping ball into the box was misjudged by Birighitti and fell kindly for Il Gwan to bury for his hat-trick and a 3-2 victory.

It was a heartbreaking end to a dream campaign for the youngsters which was been set on fire by the performances of Bulut, ex-Roar flier Tommy Oar and skipper Ben Kantarovski.

On a testing wet and heavy pitch, both teams took a little time to establish a tempo and adjust to the difficult conditions.

DPR Korea took the lead in the 11th minute courtesy of a solo effort by Jong Il-gwan who beat two defenders on his run into the box then slip a well placed shot past Qantas Young Socceroos goal keeper Mark Birighitti who was unable to make a save when diving to his left.

The Young Socceroos equalised in the 25th minute after Marc Warren combined with Tommy Oar on the left. Oar was then able to provide a fantastic cross from near the sideline that found Kerem Bulut who headed in from 12 yards out.

Oar and Bulut combined again to give the Young Socceroos second goal five minutes later. Oar picked up the ball 30 metres from goal and made a run into the box shrugging off three defenders in the process.

Once inside the box, Oar’s left-footed shot was blocked by the DPR Korea goalkeeper Jin Song but fell in the path of Bulut who was backing up his team-mate.  Bulut made no mistake passing the ball calmly into an empty goal.

DPR Korea equalised just before halftime after a lapse in concentration by the Young Socceroos allowed Jong Il-gwan to receive a ball on the left just outside the Australian penalty box. 

The North Korean striker dribbled into the box and unleashed a shot that Dylan McGowan tried to block, but in the process deflected it into the goal giving the committed Birighitti no chance of saving.

Mathew Leckie had a chance to restore the Qantas Young Socceroos lead during added time at the end of the first half with a free kick from just outside the box in the middle of the park.  Leckie’s stinging shot to Jin Song’s left forced the goalkeeper to make an acrobatic diving save to deny the attempt.

The Young Socceroos applied the pressure early in the second half with Mathew Leckie having a great opportunity on the edge of the box but hit his shot straight at Jin Song.

In the 68th minute Mustafa Amini found himself unmarked in the box, on the right and on the end of a Tommy Oar pass.  Amini’s resulting shot narrowly missed the target, ultimately hitting the side netting.

Arguably the Young Socceroos best chance came in the 75th minute when Oar again crossed in for Kerem Bulut 12 yards out.  Unfortunately on this occasion, Bulut’s header didn’t find the target, with the ball flying narrowly wide of the right-hand post.

DPR Korea came back late in the game and with five minutes to go put a long ball through to Hyok Chol which required Birighitti to courageously come off his line to smother the ball, diffusing a dangerous situation and putting his body on the line at the same time.

Just as the match seemed headed for extra-time, the winner came in the 89th minute when DPR Korea played a long ball into the box from a free kick just over half-way. Birighitti again came off his line to claim the cross.

But he fumbled the attempt,  dropping the ball at the feet of Jong Il-gwan who chipped into goal through the scrambling Young Socceroos defence to seal the win and the AFC U-19 Championship.

The Qantas Young Socceroos will now return to their respective clubs and begin their preparations for the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup which will be played in Colombia next July/August.