Organisers hope a novel playing format will boost attendance at the Fortis Chinese New Year Cup at Hong Kong Stadium on February 17. Three teams - reigning Asian club champions Pohang Steelers, of South Korea, and local sides Pegasus and Kitchee - will feature in a round- robin competition of three matches, each lasting 45 minutes. 'This format has been very successful in Europe, but is something new to local fans,' said Ken Ng Kin, of Kitchee, the organising club. 'As each match will be decided in 45 minutes, the teams have to attack and try to beat the opponents as quickly as possible. It should be very exciting to watch.' The two local sides will kick off the night for the first match, followed by Pegasus against Steelers, with a Kitchee-Steelers match wrapping up the tournament. Three points will be awarded for a victory, and one for a draw. The team with the highest points will walk away with US$20,000. A penalty shoot-out will be introduced to break a deadlock if necessary. Ng was confident that the visitors would bring their best squad to Hong Kong as the South Koreans are preparing for their first group match in the AFC Champions League the following week. 'They will use the Hong Kong event as a build-up for their away match against Adelaide United in the Champions League and there is no way there are not sending a strong team here,' Ng said. 'Kitchee are negotiating with two retired players from the Spanish Primera Liga to strengthen the team, while Pegasus will field a team strengthened by South China expatriate players.' Steelers need to register their players for the AFC Champions League competition on Saturday, which will help them decide their line-up for the Hong Kong tournament. It is expected that South Korea international Seol Ki-hyeon, who recently turned down an offer to play for South China, will be part of the team. Tickets prices are HK$150 for allocated seats, HK$100 for free seating and a HK$40 concessionary rate for senior citizens and students. Ng said they would need a crowd of 12,000 to break even with a budget of more than HK$1 million.
