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Football: Adelaide Slams ‘Flawed’ Persipura Playoff Ruling
February 14, 2012

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Australia’s Adelaide United has hit out at a “flawed” court ruling that has pitched it into a sudden-death Asian Football Confederation Champions League playoff with rebel Indonesian club Persipura Jayapura.

Club chairman Greg Griffin said the Court of Arbitration for Sport should not have provisionally reinstated Persipura, who were kicked out of the Asian club showpiece for joining the breakaway Indonesian Super League.

The ruling means 2008 finalist Adelaide, which had been gifted a spot in the main draw by the exclusion, along with Liaoning Whowin’s withdrawal, hosts Persipura on Thursday with a place in the Champions League at stake.

“The decision is simply flawed,” Griffin said. “The appeal should never have got past first base.”

Griffin added that the playoff’s result could be scrapped within weeks when CAS makes a final verdict. Under the current scenario, Thursday’s winners will take their place in Group E alongside Uzbek side Bunyodkor and Japan’s Gamba Osaka. However, even if it loses, Adelaide could still go to the group stage if in its final ruling — which is expected before March 6 — CAS disqualifies Persipura.

“CAS has made an interim ruling to accommodate a rebel club,” he said. “It is an absolute indictment of CAS this has happened and FIFA has sat back and allowed it to happen.”

Coach John Kosmina admitted his team had been taken by the surprise by the decision, but striker Dario Vidosic said Adelaide were determined to preserve their Champions League berth.

“We feel that it’s our spot that [Persipura] want to take away from us and there’s no chance we’ll let them come here and take our spot, that’s for sure,” Vidosic said.

Liaoning had earlier pulled out of the draw, made in December, in protest at having to go through qualifying after it finished third in the Chinese Super League.

Adelaide, which lost to Gamba Osaka in the 2008 final, placed third in last year’s A-League to earn a place in the playoffs. 

AFP, JG