Having lost their opening game to Ghana 1-0, the Serbians bounced back superbly to beat Germany by the same score, only to be defeated by Australia 2-1 when advancing to the last 16 seemed within reach.
Serbia missed too many clear-cut chances in all three matches and conceded soft goals, while the team also struggled to keep up with a high-tempo game throughout the tournament.
"I have no complaints about the team effort, we deserved a lot more and we are upset about some of the decisions that didn't go our way in the match against Australia," Antic told a news conference after seeing his team go out.
"This generation will definitely stay together because it's made a good impression and we have a lot to look forward to in the future."
The stubborn 61-year old coach was unequivocally loyal to towering striker Nikola Zigic, who kept missing one sitter after another, while he kept the crafty Zoran Tosic on the bench until the final 30 minutes of Serbia's futile campaign.
"We got punished because Australia had the courage to attack and put pressure on us in the second half, while we struggled to keep up with the torrid pace of the game," said Vidic.
"We are bitterly disappointed because we played some good football in fits and starts and it just wasn't enough to fulfil our ambition of progressing to the knockout stage of the competition."
