2010 FIFA World Cup Betting Tips, Picks and Odds: See you in Germany!: Australia, Spain head five more World Cup qualifiers

The cast list for the 2006 World Cup was finally completed when the remaining five of the 32 available places were snapped up by Australia, Spain, Switzerland, Trinidad and Tobago and the Czech Republic. This quintet sealed their seats at next year's feast of football in Germany via the playoffs in markedly different ways.

While Spain cruised to their ninth straight World Cup finals with a 6-2 aggregate win over Slovakia, it couldn't have been tighter in Sydney where Australia defeated two time winners Uruguay on penalties.

The Australians ended 32 years of World Cup heartache after goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer saved spot-kicks from Dario Rodriguez and Marcelo Zalayeta to lift them to a 4-2 shoot-out win. The game was locked up at 1-1 on aggregate after extra time.

John Aloisi, who came on as a substitute in the first period of extra time, converted the winning penalty to send his teammates and the full house of 82,698 delirious with joy. It was another triumph for Dutch coach Guus Hiddink, who was only in charge of the Australian team for his fifth game since coming in for Frank Farina in July. Hiddink will now take Australia to next year's finals after leading the Netherlands and South Korea to the semifinals of the last two World Cups.

In Manama, Trinidad and Tobago staged a remarkable comeback to ensure they'd be rubbing shoulders with the sport's superpowers next year in what will be their World Cup debut. After an all important away goal in the 1-1 first leg draw in Port-of-Spain Bahrain were firmly in the driving seat but Trinidad ensured they became the first Caribbean island to make it to the finals since Jamaica in 1998 with a 49th minute goal from Dennis Lawrence.

Like the Trinidadians the Czech Republic were celebrating their first World Cup appearance with a 1-0 win over Norway after defeating the Scandinavians by the same margin in the first leg. Dortmund midfielder Tomas Rosicky's 35th minute strike sealed the fate of Norway who went close when only a fine save by Chelsea keeper Petr Cech denied John Carew's second half header.

Over in Istanbul Turkey, third in 2002, lost out despite beating Switzerland 4-2. Having won the first leg 2-0 for a 4-4 aggregate the Swiss it was who went through on away goals. Turkey coach Fatih Terim was furious, blaming the referees in both legs - Slovakia's Lubos Michel Saturday in Bern and Belgium's Franck de Bleeckere in Istanbul - for crucial errors, which he said cost Turkey a place in the finals.

And finally to Bratislava where Slovakia failed to climb the mountain they'd left themselves after a 5-1 first leg hammering by Spain in Madrid. Spain got a shock four minutes into the second half when a defensive error gave Slovakia's Filip Holosko the chance to score but Spain were the better side and deserved their equaliser after 71 minutes from David Villa.