Australia and South Korea clinical but Japan struggle

SINGAPORE: Australia and South Korea took maximum points to reinforce their credentials in the race to the World Cup finals but Asian powerhouse Japan struggled to a 1-1 draw with Uzbekistan on Wednesday.

The Socceroos scored a clinical 4-0 win over Qatar in Brisbane with a brace by Blackburn Rovers' star Brett Emerton and goals from Everton's Tim Cahill and another by Josh Kennedy.

It puts Pim Verbeek's men on top of Group A with six points from two games, following their earlier win against Uzbekistan in Tashkent.