(Reuters) – Western United head coach John Aloisi has called for a change in the scheduling of the A-League season after seeing his side toil in stifling heat in Sydney during their 2-2 draw with Macarthur United on Saturday.
Aloisi, who led Western United to their first A-League championship last year, criticised the decision to regularly play matches during the height of the summer, when temperatures can exceed 40 degrees Celsius.
“I think it’s ridiculous that we have to play in this heat,” said the former Australia striker. “Ridiculous.
“But football people that played and also coached aren’t always listened to.
“(Organisers) want to make it a good spectacle but you can’t have a good spectacle when players are struggling to run. It’s hard work for the players.”
The A-League season kicks off in spring and runs through the Australian summer in an effort to avoid battling for match day facilities with the country’s other footballing codes, including rugby league and the AFL.
That, though, has forced the competition to deal with the searing heat and Aloisi believes it is having a detrimental impact on the quality of play in the competition.
“I’ve been saying for years that I’d like to see the game played in the winter but I can understand all the other obstacles we have in changing the seasons,” said Aloisi.
“But it’s unfair on the players and the supporters when you have to watch a game and play in a game with that heat.
“It’s hard to really play your style when it’s like that. You have to try and be smart about it.”
Despite his concerns, Aloisi acknowledged nothing will change in the short term, with his Melbourne-based team on the road again next week to face Western Sydney Wanderers.
“We’ve got another next week at three o’clock next Sunday,” he said.
“I’m praying it’s not going to be this hot. But if it is we just have to deal with it because it’s not going to change at the moment.”
(Reporting by Michael Church in Hong Kong, Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
