Brazil with neighbours

Press, 14 June 1978, Page 38

Brazil with neighbours

; NZPA-Reuter Buenos Aires i ; Organisers of the World Cup Soccer finals yesterday ended 24 hours of confusion by confirming that Austria had finished first in group three after round one, with Brazil second. The finishing order, which decides in which secondround group a team will play, was thrown into doubt because published rules said a drawing of lots would be necessary when two teams tied on points and had equal goal differences. Austria and Brazil both finished their three-match programme with four points and a goal difference of one. But another rule said that in such cases the team which scored the higher number of goals would be placed first. It was this rule which the organising committee decided would apply, meaning that Austria, which scored three goals, finished above Brazil, which scored only two. ; The effect of the decision is that Brazil will play in the | same group as its South ; American rivals, Argentina and Peru, and Poland. The other second-round group is now an allEuropean affair, comprising the champion. West Ger-

many, Italy, the Netherlands and Austria. This means that the final on June 25 will be between teams from Europe and South America, unless Poland scores an upset in group B. The International Football

Federation (F.1.F.A.) yesterday banned the Scottish player, Willie Johnston, for a year for taking drugs before the World Cup match with Peru on June 3. F.I.F.A. has also sent the Scottish Football Association a very severe warning over the affair, and Johnston will be banned from taking part in all international matches for one year up to June 15, 1979.