As A-League side Central Coast Mariners is "fuming" about the scheduling of Saturday night's semifinal, A-League President Damien de Bohun said that it was "impossible to find another timeslot," according to Sebastian Hassett of the SYDNEY MORNING HERALD. The Mariners lost 1-0 to Japanese champions Sanfrecce Hiroshima on Wednesday night and arrived back in Australia on Friday morning, "giving them barely a day to prepare for their clash against the Western Sydney Wanderers." The Mariners "wanted the match moved to the Sunday" but the Football Federation of Australia said that ground availability and TV scheduling "would not allow it." De Bohun: "You can't please everybody in doing the finals but our job is to make a system that is fair and equitable for everybody and we feel, given the circumstances, we've been able to accommodate all four teams within the parameters we have." The FFA "believes it is better served from a television perspective by playing finals games over multiple days rather than on the same day, which explains why the match was not held on Sunday, despite Parramatta Stadium being available." Mariners Owner Mike Charlesworth "lambasted FFA for failing to give the club sufficient recovery time." Charlesworth: "I don't think this could happen anywhere else in the world. I know we've got a unique geographic situation but I don't think any other country would allow it. It's absolutely ludicrous" (SMH, 4/24).
