MUNICH, Germany - A goalkeeper kneeled in prayer with his back to the action. A star striker sought to calm his nerves before a decisive penalty kick.

And orange-clad Ivory Coast fans were in a frenzy as they anticipated one more chance to revel in their team's ground-stomping elephant dance.

"Meaningless" is a subjective term in the World Cup, where a game between two mathematically eliminated teams built to a thrilling climax and ended with a strife-torn nation's first victory on soccer's biggest stage.

Bonaventure Kalou's penalty shot in the 86th minute clinched the 3-2 victory over Serbia-Montenegro, capping a comeback from a two-goal deficit.

"I was just a little bit nervous for what people would think about me and Ivory Coast," said Kalou, a seasoned striker for Paris Saint-Germain.

He kissed the ball before scoring past Dragoslav Jevric.

"I knew if I missed this penalty that was going to be terrible for me, but as a soccer player you have to take risks and that was another one."

The tension was too much for Ivory Coast goalkeeper Boubacar Barry to take. He prayed, facing his own goalpost. He started celebrating even before turning around, knowing by the crowd's reaction that Kalou had scored.

The Elephants ¡ª both those in the game and those on the bench, including suspended star striker Didier Drogba ¡ª ran to the corner nearest their biggest cheering section and did their dance, to which their fans sing in French: "When the Elephants dance, it's the ground that suffers."

"It's something funny we practice in training," Kalou said. "Luckily we had the chance today to celebrate a winning goal."

Aruna Dindane scored the Elephants' other two goals in a game as thrilling as it was sloppy, with thunder and lightning over head a fitting accompaniment for explosive play by two teams about to head home.

The first penalty shot by Dindane, who played sparingly as a reserve in Ivory Coast's 2-1 loss to the Netherlands last week, cut the Elephants' deficit to 2-1. He then headed in the tying goal midway through the second half.

"This World Cup victory was very important for us," Dindane said. "We were unlucky in this tournament in the first two games and this is like a small remedy for all our misfortunes."

Ivory Coast is a country divided by a rebel-held north and government controlled south following a four-year civil war ¡ª an end to which may be in reach with the onset of disarmament talks. The team had hoped to inspire unity at the World Cup, but despite playing exciting soccer, they suffered a pair of frustrating 2-1 losses to Argentina and the Netherlands.

Playing in its first World Cup, Ivory Coast fell behind 2-0 in all three of its games. But against Serbia-Montenegro, the Elephants had enough to complete the comeback. They held a 20-6 advantage in shots and a two-to-one edge in possession.

Towering striker Nikola Zigic and opportunistic midfielder Sasa Ilic scored for Serbia-Montenegro, which after a disastrous World Cup will disband on account of Montenegro's succession from the former Yugoslav state.

Serbia-Montenegro allowed 10 goals in three losses after giving up just one in 10 qualifying games.

There were nine yellow cards handed out, including two each to Albert Nadj of Serbia-Montenegro and Cyrille Domoraud of Ivory Coast. Nadj was ejected in first-half injury time, and Domoraud got his second yellow card in second-half injury time.

Zigic got defensive-minded Serbia-Montenegro off to a quick start in the 10th minute. He made the goal look easy after Dejan Stankovic spotted the 6-foot-6 forward on a run up the middle and hit him with a bending 35-yard pass. Zigic easily cut inside defender Blaise Kouassi, sidestepped Barry and skidded the ball into the open net.

It was Serbia-Montenegro's first goal in the World Cup after losing 1-0 to the Netherlands and 6-0 to Argentina.

The Blues would need only 10 minutes to score again when they exploited another blunder by an Ivory Coast defense that was plagued by costly mistakes throughout the tournament.

Cyrille Domoraud badly misplayed a long free kick in front of his own net. Ilic was there to pick up the gift, deke Barry to the ground and score easily while Elephant defenders flailed their arms and shouted at one another.

In the 35th minute, Dudic was caught senselessly punching out an Ivory Coast cross into the penalty area, giving the Elephants a penalty shot. Dudic offered an embarrassed smile as Mexican referee Marco Rodriguez gave him a yellow card.

He then watched as Dindane slid the penalty shot inside right post ¡ª twice ¡ª because the first had to be retaken after several players rushed into the penalty area too early.

"It was very difficult psychologically for us, this game, but we started well," Dudic said. "Two penalties blew it up."

Dudic disputed the second penalty shot, saying there was no way he could get his arms out of the way of a hard shot blasted just a few yards from him.

"The first one was of course a penalty, but the second was not."