N.Z. soccer coach to return early

Press, 17 November 1981, Page 40

N.Z. soccer coach to return early

PA Auckland Kevin Fallon, the New Zealand World Cup soccer coach, will return home tomorrow to give his side four extra days training before the vital game against Saudi Arabia on November 28.

The team’s manager, Mr John Adshead and Mr Fallon watched the Chinese beat Saudi Arabia, 4-2, in Kuala Lumpur last week, and both men were to have stayed for the second game on Thursday.

But in view of the resuult of this match the New Zealand World Cup committee has decided to bring Mr Fallon back early for additional team training. Mr Adshead will fly home on Sunday.

“We have got to make an all-out effort to get a possible six points from these other games,” said Mr Charlie Dempsey, director of the World Cup committee yesterday.

“Kevin Fallon will be returning on Wednesday morning, and this will give us four extra days training.” Mr Dempsey added that a victory over Saudia Arabia at Mount Smart was most

important if New Zealand was to qualify for the cup finals in Spain next year. Although there were four injuries to the cup squad during their short Victorian tour last week, he said he was sure they were making a good recovery. Meanwhile, the World Cup Committee will meet today to decide on various security measures they will take for the Saudi Arabia match after the incidents in the last match on the same ground against Kuwait. Immediately those decisions have been made a telex message will be sent to the

International Football Federation headquarters in Zurich giving full details. Mr Dempsey said his committee had already spoken to the police and the Auckland Regional Authority. “We are keeping our fingers crossed,” said Mr Dempsey. “If there is any more misbehaviour we could be out for a couple of years. F.I.F.A. did it to Iraq — they were out for three years.”

F.I.F.A. did not make decisions lightly. That is why Mr Dempsey showed them a video film of the Kuwait match so they could study the whole affair in depth.. Mr Dempsey did not give any indication on the security decisions likely to be taken for the next game, but he did say he had received many letters claiming that too much beer in the sun had contributed to the disturbances.

He repeated that he was totally opposed to the use of barbed wire round the ground to keep potential angry spectators away from teams and officials.

“I would give the game away if we did this,” he said. “It would no longer be a sport." _____