SOCCEROOS coach Pim Verbeek hailed his team's ability to thrive in adversity and praised their tremendous mental and physical strength as he reflected on the victory in Oman.
Verbeek hailed the way his players had shown their ability to adapt and cope in the face of adversity - having to play virtually the whole game with 10 men following Rhys Williams' red card.
"We worked very hard, when we had the ball we were always looking to create chances," Verbeek told reporters in Oman.
"I think the performance of the team overall was very good, mentality was very good and it was good to see that we could cope in difficult circumstances like today."
The match ended with a firework being thrown from the crowd which only just missed David Carney.
An investigation into the incident will take place, Verbeek again praising the way his players refused to be rattled or distracted by it.
Australia are top of group B with seven points.
They have two remaining two group matches. They are away against Kuwait on January 6 and home to Indonesia in Brisbane on March 3. Kuwait's win over Indonesia leaves them just a point behind the Socceroos.
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