SOCCEROOS coach Pim Verbeek slammed his star players Vince Grella and Tim Cahill for two brutal tackles on New Zealand winger Leo Bertos, challenges that in a World Cup match would have left Australia with only nine men on the pitch.

Australia defeated the Kiwis 2-1 at the MCG last night thanks to a last-gasp strike from Brett Holman, but the win was marred by the ugly challenges by two of Australia’s best-known players.

After Cahill’s scything challenge, which followed Grella’s two-footed lunge, Bertos was carried off on a stretcher and out of the game after barely half an hour.

Verbeek praised the All Whites for their discipline and refusal to turn the game into a battle of retaliation, but warned that such a physical approach by Australia in South Africa would be a disaster for his team.

"In the World Cup that’s probably two red cards, so it’s a good lesson because I cannot accept this of course. The players know this is not the way they should play the game. You cannot afford to go into whatever game and make tackles like that. I cannot find any reason why you should do it.