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What was supposed to be a public relations dream became a logistical nightmare for the A-League after Gold Coast United’s much-hyped clash with the Mariners was sensationally abandoned.
While no-one was arguing with referee Chris Beath’s decision to call off the game at 0-0 in the 20th minute due to a water-logged pitch, many were scratching their heads wondering when the game could be rescheduled.
And Skilled Park may yet cause more headaches for the A-League, after the “abysmal” state of the pitch was slammed by both sides on Sunday.
In all, it was a major anti-climax for a match that promised so much after United’s billionaire owner Clive Palmer offered free entry to the Skilled Park showdown as a tribute to Frank Lowy and his World Cup bid team.
About 25,000 free tickets had been snapped up by Sunday – not bad for a club that had a league-worse season average of about 2800.
But torrential rain ensured a sellout crowd of 27,400 was never going to arrive at the drenched ground.
Still, a new ground record of 10,146 for a GC United A-League game turned out for the clash in a heartening sign for the battling club.
But it may have been more trouble than it was worth as A-League boss Lyall Gorman seemed at a loss as to when the game would be slotted into an already packed season.
“We have to go back and look at the availability – I don’t know where we go from here,” he said.
Mariners coach Graham Arnold revealed he did not want the game to start on Sunday after inspecting the “dangerous” pitch – but wondered aloud when the match could be replayed.
On the home stretch to the finals, the fourth-placed Mariners have only played 18 games – four behind runaway ladders Brisbane Roar.
“It’s hard now. We have played 18 games, we are four games behind a lot of teams already and the last round is February 13,” Arnold said.
“We’ve got about eight weeks to play 12 games – it is going to be a very tight schedule.”
Both coaches took aim at the patchy, water-logged pitch which Arnold said had deteriorated horribly since their last Skilled Park game on September 19.
“(Then) it was the best pitch in the A-League – (now) it’s hard to beat for the worst,” he said.
“It’s hard for the Gold Coast to play good football on that. I don’t know what has happened since last time we were here.”
“The pitch is abysmal. I just felt it was dangerous for the players – and the players’ welfare is the most important thing. Especially in the A-League with the heavy programs – there’s a lot of games with short turnarounds.”
United coach Miron Bleiberg said the ground – owned by the Queensland government – was the worst in the competition.
“We can’t hide from the fact – of the grounds that the A-League is sharing, it is in the worst condition,” he said.
The match began in soggy conditions and only got worse as the rain came down, clearly affecting play.
United striker Joel Porter blamed the pitch for his squandered 14th-minute chance while the Mariners’ Adam Kwasnik fluffed an 11th-minute penalty kick.
Still, Bleiberg believed the game had done its job in injecting passion back into Gold Coast soccer.
“Sometimes you go to a restaurant and you get your entree and then you feel like (your main course), so hopefully the 10,000 that came today will feel like the main meal at some stage,” he said.
The abandoned match adds extra desperation to the third-placed United’s next clash – their blockbuster against arch rivals Brisbane on Boxing Day.
The Roar have the minor premiership in sight after extending their unbeaten run to 17 games thanks to their 2-0 win over North Queensland on Saturday night.
Brisbane have opened up a 10-point buffer on No.2 Adelaide United, who stumbled with Friday night’s shock 2-1 loss to Melbourne Heart at Hindmarsh Stadium.
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