Glory face FFA Cup fixture row
A row is brewing between Perth Glory and Football Federation Australia over the scheduling of the club's FFA Cup semifinal with second-tier Victorian outfit Bentleigh Greens.
Glory were rewarded for beating Melbourne Victory 4-2 after extra time in last week’s dramatic quarterfinal with a semifinal against Bentleigh in Melbourne.
But thewest.com.au understands FFA is planning the semifinal to be played on Tuesday, just two days after Glory’s round-five A-League match away to Central Coast in Gosford.
The busy schedule comes not long after Glory finished a tough run of three matches in seven days, culminating in the 2-1 A-League win over Newcastle Jets last Sunday.
FFA could confirm the semifinal schedule as early as this afternoon.
It is believed the other semifinal, between Adelaide United and Central Coast in South Australia, will be played on the Wednesday.
Glory are privately seething that FFA has not given more consideration to their heavy travel burden, which is by far the worst in Australian soccer.
To ease the burden, Glory coach Kenny Lowe has been forced to rotate his squad and several players have been on light duties at training.
Star striker Andy Keogh and Rostyn Griffiths were restricted to minimal work this morning, while Youssouf Hersi and Richard Garcia were among those rested last week.
Lowe said his side would stay on the east coast after Sunday’s Central Coast clash and indicated his preference for at least a three-day break between matches.
“Really you need a good three-day turnaround before you play another game to make sure everybody’s safe and well,” Lowe said.
“If you don't do that, maybe you leave the guys open to injury.
“We’ve got to have a good recovery period to make sure that everyone can play again safely.
“That’s the main thing and I'm sure the FFA are looking at that with all the expertise they've got.
“I’m sure they're going to do the right thing by everybody.”
Ruben Zadkovich is a chance to return from a back injury against Bentleigh, while Chris Harold will likely line-up in the youth team this weekend after overcoming a quad complaint.
Brazilian winger Sidnei Sciola (calf) is still a fortnight away.
