The 2015 AFC Asian Cup has come to life after Iraq and the United Arab Emirates' shock wins against their much-fancied quarterfinal opponents, Iran and Japan. The question now is: can the West Asian giant-killers keep the fairytale going in Australia?

Iraq face South Korea in the first of the semifinals in Sydney on Monday night.

With both teams having played 120 minutes in their respective quarterfinals, the Koreans will look to make their extra day's rest count.

"We have to play the fast ball,...

Canberra is a quiet kind of place, especially in January when the politicians are on holiday. It's pleasant, green, spacious, with plenty to do, but it is not a city that buzzes. The stadium is still quite a distance from where the action usually is.

But not on this balmy Friday evening when West Asian giants Iran and Iraq came together in a clash that would be too easy to describe as explosive. Shuddering would perhaps be better.

Let's just keep it simple. It was an epic. An instant...