Indonesian League kicks off next month

Indonesian League kicks off next month

BANDUNG (JP): The chairman of the Soccer Association of
Indonesia (PSSI), Agum Gumelar, said on Wednesday evening that
the association would stage the sixth Indonesian League starting
from Nov. 7.

Agum announced the decision during a dinner with PSSI's team
for the Asia Cup after it beat Persib Bandung 2-0 in a tryout to
prepare for the qualifying round of the cup in Hong Kong in late
October.

Agum, who is also governor of the National Resilience
Institute (Lemhanas), said newly appointed officials must
consider many factors which could help participating teams,
especially in financial factors, because of the varying zone
divisions.

Agum named transportation costs as the main problem for clubs
throughout the country.

"You can imagine the budget that must be provided by a team in
Irian Jaya to fly to Kalimantan. It's really different compared
to in Europe, where each country can be reached by train," he
said.

Agum said PSSI would await political developments in the
country, especially in the results of the presidential election
from Oct. 20 to Oct. 22.

Student rallies and riots in the capital forced multinational
companies to withdraw their interest in sponsoring clubs here.
FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) still ban foreign
teams from visiting Indonesia.

PSSI secretary-general Trie Goestoro told The Jakarta Post
that soccer match rules in Indonesia were in accordance with FIFA
standards. Many problems have occurred due to the inconsistent
application of the rules for the vested interests of some
parties.

Trie cited the transfer of a player which was already planned
in detail. However, there were still obstacles because of the
intervention of many people.

In Yogyakarta, Persebaya Surabaya tied 2-2 with Indocement
Cirebon in the Group B round robin in the fourth Sultan Hamengku
Buwono IX Cup at Mandala Krida Stadium.

Persebaya clinched a semifinal berth by finishing first in the
standings with only one goal difference with Indocement, which
also qualified for Saturday's final four.

In Group A, home favorite PSIM Yogyakarta made it to the
semifinals by beating Gelora Dewata 2-0 to lead the standings
with four points, followed by Gelora with three points.

Persebaya's striker Ariadi scored in the 11th minute but
Jaldesir Jesus Dos Santos of PSIM equaled 1-1 in the 40th minute.

In the second half, Budi of Persebaya scored past PSIM
goalkeeper Herlambang in the 55th minute. Dos Santos scored the
equalizer in the 85th minute. (43/44)