WHAT a match! What an occasion! And what timing as far as Hong Kong sport is concerned in these troubled early days for the magnificent new national stadium.
I'm referring, of course, to the exhibition football match between Hong Kong champions Eastern and Italian Cup winners Sampdoria, when the stadium was filled to its 40,000 capacity and a further 5,000 people were turned away.
It was a marvellous sight - not the people being turned away but the ''Sold Out'' signs going up around the ground - and one which goes a long way to restoring faith in the billion-dollar stadium project.
Let's face it, since the stadium re-opened on March 11, there has been nothing but controversy, criticism and confusion, so much so that the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club, who paid for the redevelopment, must have wondered why they had bothered getting involved.
The Jockey Club described the stadium as ''a donation to the people of Hong Kong'' and, at last, the people of Hong Kong responded accordingly.
On the morning of the match, some 8,000 tickets were still available but these had been bought almost an hour before the 8 pm kick-off, leaving thousands to begin the long journey home much earlier than expected.