Macau World Cup qualifier protest continues with 39-goal FA Cup farce as goalkeepers allow opponents to score
- Match between Tak Chun Ka I and Hang Sai is latest thumbing of the nose to the Macau FA after refusal to travel to Sri Lanka for second leg
- Follows a letter to Fifa and the AFC written by captain Nicholas Torrao and threat by players to quit the national team
Tak Chun Ka I beat Hang Sai 21-18 in the opening weekend of the competition at Lin Fong Stadium, with even the goalkeepers getting in on the scoring. The farcical encounter saw both goalkeepers deliberately getting out of the way of shots to allow the opposition players to score and teams applauding their opponents’ goals.
It was a stark contrast to when the teams met in the league in April and the game finished 2-0 to Hang Sai.
That decision was made on the basis that they could not guarantee the safety of the players in the restive South Asia country.
The farcical situation has led many to fear for the future of football in Macau, with clubs facing a potential ban from AFC competitions.
This year Macau did not enter a team into the AFC Cup, with Benfica de Macau unable to meet the youth programme and stadium requirements of the governing body despite being eligible.
Meanwhile, this season’s FA Cup only features teams from the top division, the Liga Elite, which is a departure from previous seasons, when it was also open to lower tier teams.
The game between Tak Chun Ka I and Hang Sai was a play-off to get into the quarter-finals. In the other play-off game Monte Carlo beat Policia 2-0 to proceed into the quarter-finals.
The Liga Elite continues this week with the penultimate round of fixtures on Wednesday night. CPK and Cheng Fung are still in the title race, though it is not clear whether the protests will continue into those league games.
