FAS say National Stadium grass is shit, how about use Jln Besar stadium for Suzuki

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malaysian national team football coach tell them to fuck off.



SINGAPORE: “No artificial turf please, we prefer natural grass” – that is the message being conveyed to the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) following the confirmation of Singapore as host of the AFF Suzuki Cup Group B matches.

The iconic 55,000-seater National Stadium has already been given the green light by the AFF after a recent commitment by stadium authorities Sports Hub Pte Ltd (SHPL) to deliver a playable surface when the group kicks off on Nov 23.

The 8,000-capacity Jalan Besar Stadium, which has an artificial surface, has been mooted by the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) as a possible complementary venue, along with the Bishan and Choa Chu Kang stadiums.

This follows the request by SHPL that the National Stadium host only three – instead of all six – of the Group B matches so as to maintain the condition and quality of the pitch.

YISHUN STADIUM A POSSIBLE VENUE

TODAY has learnt that the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), whose national team are drawn in Group B alongside hosts and defending champions Singapore, Thailand and Myanmar, has suggested the Yishun Stadium as a possible venue for the other matches.

Yishun served as the home ground for the Harimau Muda team in the S-League two seasons ago and, more pertinently, has a natural grass surface.

Said FAM secretary-general Hamidin Amin: “We are writing to the AFF requesting that they should not consider Jalan Besar Stadium as the second venue. I believe all the other teams in the group also do not like the idea of playing on artificial turf.

“We should be fair to all the teams in the group by playing all matches on natural grass. We are suggesting Yishun Stadium because some of our players are familiar with the stadium when they played for Harimau Muda.”

Malaysian head coach Dollah Salleh has given the cold shoulder to the idea of playing at Jalan Besar.

“The Suzuki Cup is a prestigious tournament, and therefore a good playing surface is important. Not on an artificial turf pitch,” Dollah told TODAY. “Already we have some tough matches ahead and we don’t need the distraction of playing on a plastic pitch.”

The AFF will meet the FAS to finalise the decision on the alternate venue, with the National Stadium likely to host all three matches involving the home team.

The poor state of the National Stadium pitch has drawn plenty of flak recently, with Brazil coach Dunga saying, ahead of his team’s friendly against Japan last week, that it has more sand than grass.

To preserve the pitch for the AFF Suzuki Cup, SHPL was forced to take drastic measures, including cancelling an international rugby match between the Maori All Blacks and the Asia Pacific Dragons, postponing a Jay Chou concert from Nov 8 to Dec 27, and moving the stage for Friday’s Mariah Carey concert away from the pitch.

FAM’s Hamidin said any stadium – except Jalan Besar – is fine by them. “We hope the AFF will consider our request, but there is nothing we can do if they decide to go ahead with Jalan Besar Stadium,” he added.


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