FFA Rejects Time Change

[Rob]

http://www1.sbs.com.au/home/index.php3?id=65115

Time on Australia's side
SBS


Football Federation Australia has confirmed that it has received and rejected an official request from Uruguay to change the kick-off time of its World Cup qualifying play-off first leg match in Montevideo this weekend.

The game at the Centenario Stadium is scheduled for a 9pm kick-off on Saturday (Sunday 10am AEDT), but the Uruguay Football Association had asked for that to be brought forward by four hours to 5pm local time.

FFA held the upper hand in the negotiations to alter the agreed kick-off time and decided it was not in its best interests to make any alteration at this stage.

The Socceroos will board a chartered Qantas flight shortly after the conclusion of the first leg and will arrive in Sydney early on Monday.

Uruguay's travel itinerary has been thrown in to disarray with its planned charter flight from Montevideo to Sydney falling through.

At present Uruguay's only option is a commercial flight that jets off on the morning after the first game, which lands in Sydney at 7am next Tuesday - just 35 hours before the second leg at Telstra Stadium.

Uruguay may have got its way in changing the match officials - from an all-Belgium quartet to a Spanish foursome - for the Sydney game but it now appears as though Australia will have the upper-hand before game two with an extra day to prepare.

And in some good news for football fans, Telstra Stadium officials have announced that supporters will be allowed to bring small drums and national flags in to the second leg match against Uruguay on Wednesday 16 November.

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Great news

We have about 10 hours more then them to recover, and I think they get here in the night.

WERE GOING TO GERMANY!

 

[Siawash]

 

[Raikkonen]

Australia is doing everything they can to piss off Uruguay and take some advantage over them. I really hope La Celeste kick their ass .

 

[Internazionale]

Australia are the favorites to go through.

 

[#1 Stunna]

Sorry Rob... but it aint gonna happen.

 

[IceBlu]

Would be funny if Australia still lost

From a neutral point of view, Uruguay just have so many talented players that it would be a shame if they didn't make it.

 

[Ruben Sosa]

I'm not the least bit worried. The fact that Australia needs to take these off field advantages only further convinces me we're a superior team that will not only win in Uruguay, but Sydney as well.

 

[celtic_bhoy]

Off Field advantages??? The original time was set, so were playing at that time.

 

[Bobby]

In Australia's defense, the players have often voiced displesure with having to travel from Europe to Sydney, and they were expecting to play at this time.

 

[RUSI]

F*ck Australians.

 

[Seán D]

i will if they are good looking enough female of course

Australia did nothing wrong, I don't see a problem.

 

[romero]

Fvck Australia. Uruguay is going to the World Cup again.

Oh yeah the game will be showed live on Gol TV and on Gol TV Canada.

 

[djperthglory]

off field advantages??

first of all just think about that comment. had the ffa said yes ok for the time change it would be in uruguays favour. that would be an off field advantage to uruguay wouldnt it? so i dont understand what the hell u are trying to say.

come on australia its our destiny to be in germany!!!

 

[hermolt]

How thoroughly amusing - we're being accused of being dodgy to get off field advantages? This from a nation who not only made us clean brand new boots for 2 hours at the airport, but spat at, heckled and made a racket outside our players' hotel last time around? That, coupled with the fact that it was Uruguay who pushed the time back to 9pm so WE couldn't get a commercial flight back to Australia, has made me delighted that we haven't been pushed around by Uruguay.

I still don't think we'll qualify, though.

 

[Ruben Sosa]

Denying postponing your match, denying us to advance ours, denying us to change our kick-off time...You're relying on us being fatigued to boost your chances of qualifying. I call that off-field advantage.

In any case, I think its best we don't reschedule our time. I rather we play our home game at night. If we have to fly in the morning, well that's too bad...

I don't see how agreeing to bring forward the kick-off time is of advantage to us, if anything, it'd mean neither side would have an advantage over the other, but whatever...

How thoroughly amusing - we're being accused of being dodgy to get off field advantages? This from a nation who not only made us clean brand new boots for 2 hours at the airport, but spat at, heckled and made a racket outside our players' hotel last time around?

Right... because it was, in fact, the whole nation that was waiting for you at the airport, with prior instruction from the AUF and Government to spit at you.

That, coupled with the fact that it was Uruguay who pushed the time back to 9pm so WE couldn't get a commercial flight back to Australia, has made me delighted that we haven't been pushed around by Uruguay.

We've been playing at night for the last year. It's how we're used to play. And it saves Australians the need to get up at 5 AM to watch the game. So the time change works out well for you too.

I don't think delaying your flight plans were the AUF's intentions, but then, the AUF is run by a moron, so maybe it was the reason...

 

[Rob]

We've been playing at night for the last year. It's how we're used to play. And it saves Australians the need to get up at 5 AM to watch the game. So the time change works out well for you too..

As it stands right now, the game is on at 10am in Australia.

That is fine, if changed, it would be 8am.

What a pitiful argument. You wanted the game at 9pm, we agreed, so we go out and organise everything, however due to Uruguay’s inability to organise anything itself, we now have to change our plans again?

Don’t accuse us of being dirty, we haven’t complained about the referees, asked for a change in the time, or favours, complied with all deadlines, etc.

 

[italianstyle87]

Right... because it was, in fact, the whole nation that was waiting for you at the airport, with prior instruction from the AUF and Government to spit at you.

I don't think delaying your flight plans were the AUF's intentions, but then, the AUF is run by a moron, so maybe it was the reason...

that first argument is the most pathetic point i've ever seen "the whole country wasn't there, so it's not our fault"
any moron can tell what happened to australia in montevideo on 01 is a disgrace

the AUF played the game late deliberately to STOP australia getting out early, now it's backfired in your faces because one one wants to give your NT the $650,000 for a chartered flight out

 

[Bobby]

Yes, but there's nothing wrong with keeping the match where it was originally planned to be. Take up the issue with FIFA, not FFA.

 

[Fernandez]

Didn't Uruguay got their wish to change the refs? That is one advantage that Uruguay had though.

 

[Ruben Sosa]

As it stands right now, the game is on at 10am in Australia.

That is fine, if changed, it would be 8am.

The original time was 4:20pm, five hours earlier.

What a pitiful argument. You wanted the game at 9pm, we agreed, so we go out and organise everything, however due to Uruguay’s inability to organise anything itself, we now have to change our plans again?

Arguement? I want us to play at 9pm. Read the whole posts, not only the bits you don't like.

that first argument is the most pathetic point i've ever seen "the whole country wasn't there, so it's not our fault"
any moron can tell what happened to australia in montevideo on 01 is a disgrace

Yes, it was a disgrace. We apologized immediately. There's really nothing else we can do about it now. Should we stereotype the whole country for the action of approximately two dozen people?

I find it sad that what happened is constantly brought up, even when it has nothing to do with what anyone is discussing.

the AUF played the game late deliberately to STOP australia getting out early, now it's backfired in your faces because one one wants to give your NT the $650,000 for a chartered flight out

We play at night. If any of you would actually bother to check you'd find that's how we've been playing for the past year.

Didn't Uruguay got their wish to change the refs? That is one advantage that Uruguay had though.

Did we actually ask for a ref change? I've found nothing in our websites about it...

I know Fossati didn't like that one of the refs was from a neighboring country to Hiddink. I'm fairly certain Australia wouldn't have liked an Argentinean ref either.