Soccer: Postponed qualifiers create headache for Emblen

All three games at the Olympic qualifiers were postponed today, including the Oly Whites' match against Tonga.

New Zealand Olympic football coach Neil Emblen totally supports the decision to postpone today's Olympic qualifiers in Taupo but it has caused him a few headaches with the prospect of playing three games in four days.

All three games were postponed today, including the Oly Whites' match against Tonga, because of extreme weather hitting Taupo.

Wind gusts of up 100km/h had caused considerable damage to the region, including road closures and power cuts.

Scaffolding for television cameras had damaged the roof of the stand at Owen Delany Park, advertising hoardings were flying around like canvas and the satellite dish used to help stream live coverage had been damaged after hurtling onto the No 2 pitch. The ground was under a Civil Defence lockdown, meaning no one could go into the area because of the risk of injury.

It's hoped the weather subsides enough for the postponed games to be played tomorrow. The semifinals is still scheduled for Thursday with the final to be played on Saturday _ the winner earns a spot in London.

"We had already named the team and the lads were already to go and play,'' Emblen said. "We were just getting onto the mini bus to come and play.

"We had come up early to check on the conditions and it would have been a ridiculous spectacle. You would've hit the ball one way and watched the wind blow it off the pitch on the other side. I totally agree with the referee's decision but it makes it really difficult to cram the games in before the final stage starts. It's going to mean plenty of backing up and we are going to need to conserve our energy now.''

New Zealand are expected to comfortably beat Tonga, which affords Emblen the luxury of tinkering with his side. He is likely to rest a handful of players tomorrow as he looks to Thursday's semifinal but he was also mindful of putting out a side capable of winning well to gain valuable confidence and momentum.

Only a two goal defeat to Tonga would prevent the Oly Whites securing a semifinal against the second placed team from Group A, which will be decided when joint leaders Vanuatu and Fiji meet tomorrow in another rescheduled match.

Emblen had been planning to rest Adam McGeorge against Tonga because he was on a yellow card but others are now likely to join him.

Striker Dakota Lucas is already suspended but will be available on Thursday and it's hoped defender Ian Hogg (hamstring) will also be ready to play in the semifinal.

"We were looking to put in a good performance today to get confidence heading into the semifinals but now we just need to be a bit more cautious and try to get as many players as fresh for when the semifinals come along,'' Emblen said.

"The guys are dealing with it fine. This is international football and they all want to play as many games as they can for their country. I'm sure they will do anything that's required. They all have one goal in mind and that's making the Olympic Games.''