By TERRY MADDAFORD
Soccer's showpiece final is in danger of becoming an embarrassing non-event - in the meantime at least.
Frantic off-field action yesterday was struggling to avert a possible High Court challenge to the result of Sunday's Ansett national club championship semifinal between Napier City Rovers and Dunedin Technical.
It was, New Zealand Soccer chief executive Bill MacGowan admitted, something that should never have happened.
The game, played in Napier, was tied 1-1 after 90 minutes. The confusion came in extra time.
The clubs, acting on an August 14 NZS communique, understood the result would, in the first instance, be decided by a "golden goal" - whereby the first team to score in extra time are the winners.
But, no. Seconds before the start of the first of two periods of extra time, match officials decreed 30 minutes of extra time with no golden goal would be played. If the match was tied a penalty shootout would be needed to find a winner.
Dunedin scored first. Napier equalised a minute from time and went on to win the shootout 4-3 and, it seemed, progress to Sunday's final against University/Mt Wellington at North Harbour Stadium.
The Dunedin players had no time to shower before racing to the airport for their return flight. By the time they reached Wellington alarm bells were ringing. Why a shootout?
NZS became involved and mid-afternoon yesterday released a statement which said the game would be replayed in Napier tomorrow.
Dunedin coach Roger Brooks was not having any of that.
"It is unbelievable. Quite frankly I'm sick of it. We knew all along a golden goal would decide it," he said yesterday. "Yet when we were about to kick off for extra time we were told that it wasn't the case.
"By the time we got back here at noon today - and we left Dunedin on Saturday afternoon - the players were adamant they would not be going back to Napier. If they [NZS] want to award the game to Napier then they can take the flak. You can't start a game under one set of rules and finish it under another.
"If New Zealand Soccer come back with a neutral venue my players might look at that."
MacGowan, determined the result should be found on the field rather than off it, said he hoped tomorrow's game would go ahead.
"Dunedin have appealed against the decision [that the game be replayed]," said MacGowan.
"We have handed that to our appeal committee. If they rule in favour of a replay then I expect Dunedin will look for a challenge in the High Court which would mean Sunday's final could be in doubt."
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