Indonesian soccer league teams pledge fair play
JAKARTA (JP): Teams featured in the sixth Indonesian professional soccer league championship semifinals have vowed to fight for glory and play fair.
Home favorite Persija Jakarta, PSM Makassar, Persikota Tangerang and Pupuk Kaltim (PKT) of Bontang, East Kalimantan reached an unofficial agreement on Wednesday that no clashes between players will occur during the semifinals at Senayan stadium on Thursday.
"In my mind, soccer is aimed at entertaining spectators. I have instructed all players to delight their supporters. Soccer matches should look like a party for everybody," said Persija's Bulgarian coach Ivan Kolev through his interpreter.
In the quarterfinals opener last week, Persija's Brazilian midfielder Luciano Leandro attacked Arema's Chilean striker Francisco Javier Rodriguez Rubio. Leandro received marching orders for his fault.
Persikota's coach Sutan Harhara said: "I tell my players not to use their hands during a match. They play soccer with their feet."
PSM coach Syamsuddin Umar and PKT assistant coach Soengkowo Soediharto shared the same opinion. "We should maintain sportsmanship. Spectators are getting critical of what they see on the field. We agree to take them to limits with a good show," Syamsuddin said.
PSM plays Persija in the first match, dubbed the ideal semifinal, at 5 p.m., while surprising Persikota will take on PKT in the second match. RCTI will air the first semifinal match live and the second match will be (not live) at 0:30 a.m. on Friday.
All the coaches said that they would do better to avoid the 'sudden death' or the extra time in the semifinals.
"The game lasts 90 minutes. Persikota will try its best; Insya Allah (God willing) we can win. I hope there will be no extra time," Sutan told a media briefing here on Wednesday.
But the coaches refused to name the penalty shooters should a deciding shoot-out be unavoidable.
The coaches also declined to reveal their strategies.
"We will not apply the same strategy in each match. It's not proper to discuss our team line-up or strategy here," Kolev said.
Kolev also said that Persija, despite the absence of Leandro, remains the hot favorite to win its first title since the inception of the professional league in 1995.
"A strong team does not rely solely on one or two players," he said.
Best player
Meanwhile, Ronny Pattinasarany, who chairs the special committee to select the league's best player, announced on Wednesday eight candidates for the title.
The best player will receive Rp 25 million in prize money, which is provided by the Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI) and the league's main sponsor Bank Mandiri.
Those chosen in the initial list are Bima Sakti and Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto (PSM), Marthen Tao and Fachry Husaini (PKT), I Komang Mariawan and Benben Berlian (Persikota) and Bambang Pamungkas and Imran Nahumarury (Persija).
"Our assessment is based on the players' performances during the quarterfinals. We also ignored their behavior outside the soccer pitch," Ronny said.
He was responding to reporters' question on the council's nomination of Kurniawan, who just escaped charges of taking illegal drugs during the league's regular season.
"If Kurniawan is found guilty of consuming shabu-shabu (crystal methamphetamine), he must have been banned from competing in the match. But the fact, he is still playing. And he meets all the criteria. I know there will be a conflict, but there is also a freedom to choose," Rony, a former national team captain, said.
The criteria include physical and technical qualities, attacking and defending knowledge and mental qualities. (ivy)