FIFA's decision to introduce a playoff buffer in the Club World Cup to stop a repeat of Auckland City's awful showing last year looked prescient four minutes into Friday night's game between Iran's Sepahan and Waitakere United, but despite finishing up 3-1 losers the Kiwis far from disgraced themselves.
Emad Mohamed put AFC Champions League runnerup Sepahan ahead in the third minute at Tokyo's National Stadium with a header and doubled the lead seconds later with a clipped effort after a terrible mistake from Jonathan Perry and an embarrassing cuffing for the New Zealanders reared its ugly head.
Waitakere's ragtag assortment of part-timers struggled throughout the first half and things got worse at the start of the second when Abdul Wahab Abu Al Hail's long-range effort was comically bungled by 'keeper Simon Eaddy, the ball trickling over the line.
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