Mariners flight should be landing at 9.45 tonight Sydney time. They would have been fine
I read somewhere that there needs to be 72 hours between games? which would have ruled out Sunday.
From a selfish Nix perspective, it's annoying and sucks. Mainly because it takes away some of the potential tension and drama, of the 2 simultaneous games next Saturday, knowing CCM will still have a game in hand.
But with hindsight from a ALM & APL view it's the right decision. Regardless of whether the 72 hour thing is a set rule, the ALM & APL need the Mariners to win their 2nd leg AFC Cup tie next Wednesday, and the make the AFC Cup Final. It's 1-1 after the first leg and Abdysh-Ata have been given 2 weeks break from local league games (admittedly very early in their season) by the Kyrgyz FA, to rest & prepare. APL are now just giving the Mariners similar, with $USD750K at stake ($USD1.5M if Mariners make the final & win).
The record of ALM teams in AFC comps is pretty awful, and there is now only 1 spot in the 24 team AFC Elite Champions League for the ALM. The J League has 3 spots, the K League 2 spots & Chinese CSL 2 spots. So the ALM has dropped down the AFC coefficient rankings.
I'm guessing this hurts the ALM & APL financially? Especially given there is now increased cash in this revamped AFC Champions League (Elite).
You'd hope CCM winning the 2nd tier AFC Cup, helps improve the ALM's coefficient ranking within the AFC, and helps them get closer to a 2nd spot in the AFC Champions League (Elite).
Totally understand the disappointment of being robbed of a possible simultaneous Premier’s Plate decider next Saturday, but this is the right call. You can’t ask CCM to play such an important match with a severely compromised buildup. https://t.co/aEfk3aCoJH
— Jason Pine (@pineynz) April 18, 2024