Soccer official to fly to Singapore

Press, 13 April 1984, Page 6

Soccer official to fly to Singapore

PA Auckland The top New Zealand soccer official, Mr Charlie Dempsey, said he would fly to Singapore this morning for the Olympic qualifying tournament after hearing of threats by Kuwait to have New Zealand excluded. He said last night that he had not planned to attend the competition, but after hearing yesterday of the threats and an incident involving the New Zealand manager, Alan Jones, and coach, Kevin Fallon, he decided to make the trip. Mr Dempsey said the Kuwaitis were on record as saying they would do everything in their power to stop New Zealand playing at the 10team competition to find three countries to go to the Olympics.

“I think they are just scared of New Zealand,” said Mr Dempsey, chairman of the New Zealand Football Associa-

tion. “We had trouble with them when they played here in the World Cup qualifying game and when we played in Kuwait.”

Kuwait soccer officials claim New Zealand, as an Oceania country, should not be playing in a tournament for Asian nations and have vowed to do all in their power to stop the All Whites making it to Los Angeles.

The war of nerves between the two sides hotted up in Singapore yesterday, although they are not due to meet until Thursday evening. Kuwait television filmed the New Zealand team at training, but when Messrs Jones and Fallon, and a Television New Zealand commentator, John Adshead, and producer, Graeme Veitch, went to watch the Kuwaitis train the Arabs had the police escort the New Zealanders from the ground.