A-League season ready to return with packed schedule ahead of August 23 decider
The A-League season returns on July 16 with a match between Melbourne Victory and Western United, but the FFA is yet to confirm a venue for the derby
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Football Federation Australia head of leagues Greg O’Rourke won’t rule out venue changes despite confirming the A-League season will resume on July 16 with a derby between Melbourne Victory and Western United.
Having been suspended in March due to COVID-19, the 2019-20 A-League campaign will return with 27 regular season matches to be played in 28 days ahead of a finals series set to conclude with an August 23 grand final.
Almost all of the remaining matches will be played in NSW, where five venues – ANZ Stadium, Bankwest Stadium, Central Coast Stadium, McDonald Jones Stadium and Netstrata Jubilee Stadium – will be used.
One match – Brisbane Roar’s July 19 clash with Adelaide United – will be played at Gold Coast venue Cbus Super Stadium before both teams head to the NSW hub.
The Victory-United battle on July 16 is expected to be played at AAMI Park, as is the July 19 match between Melbourne City and United.
However, O’Rourke is yet to confirm the venues for both games and hasn’t ruled out playing them in NSW depending on further border and travel restrictions that may arise.
“Over the past three months all stakeholders have been working hard together with one goal in mind – to finish what we started,” O’Rourke said.
“We know the COVID-19 environment has been very difficult for many people in our community and we hope that delivering an extravaganza of matches that will allow our fans to basically see a game every day will be a unique experience for those who have stood by us.
“As we are a truly national game, the current border controls means that some of the match-day venues may need to change; however, we have secured venues in both a NSW hub model and a hybrid hub model which has most games in NSW but allows for a few games in other states.
“Whilst we don’t see the draw changing, the planning we have undertaken provides us with agility to shift between certain states if required. This version of the draw displays our current venue plan.
“We will continue to work with the federal and state governments to ensure the health and safety of our players, coaches and other stakeholders and have detailed and practical protocols in place for all parties involved in training and match days.
“I am excited to see us kick off the restart and ultimately finish off what we started last October, with our priority always being to be in a position to crown our Hyundai A-League premiers and champions for this season.”
Remaining A-League matches:
July 16: Melbourne Victory v Western United, TBC
July 17: Sydney FC v Wellington Phoenix, Jubilee Stadium
July 18: Perth Glory v Central Coast Mariners, Central Coast Stadium
July 19: Brisbane Roar v Adelaide United, CBUS Stadium
July 20: Western United v Melbourne City, TBC
July 21: Sydney FC v Newcastle Jets, Jubilee Stadium
July 22: Western Sydney Wanderers v Melbourne Victory, Bankwest Stadium
July 23: Perth Glory v Wellington Phoenix, Jubilee Stadium
July 24: Central Coast Mariners v Newcastle Jets, Central Coast Stadium
July 25: Sydney FC v Western United, Bankwest Stadium
July 26: Wellington Phoenix v Adelaide United, Bankwest Stadium
July 27: Central Coast Mariners v Western Sydney Wanderers, Central Coast Stadium
July 28: Melbourne Victory v Brisbane Roar, Bankwest Stadium
July 30: Adelaide United v Perth Glory, Bankwest Stadium
July 31: Western Sydney Wanderers v Wellington Phoenix, Bankwest Stadium
August 1: Melbourne City v Sydney FC, TBC
August 2: Newcastle Jets v Western United, McDonald Jones Stadium
August 3: Melbourne Victory v Central Coast Mariners, TBC
August 4: Western Sydney Wanderers v Perth Glory, Bankwest Stadium
August 5: Wellington Phoenix v Brisbane Roar, Bankwest Stadium
August 6: Adelaide United v Sydney FC, TBC
August 7: Western United v Western Sydney Wanderers, TBC
August 8: Perth Glory v Melbourne Victory, Bankwest Stadium
August 9: Newcastle Jets v Wellington Phoenix, McDonald Jones Stadium
August 10: Brisbane Roar v Sydney FC, ANZ Stadium
August 11: Melbourne City v Adelaide United, TBC
August 12: Perth Glory v Western United, Bankwest Stadium
ELIMINATION FINALS
August 15: Team 4 v Team 5 or Team 3 v Team 6
August 16: Team 4 v Team 5 or Team 3 v Team 6
SEMI-FINALS
August 19: 1 v Lowest Ranked EF Winner or 2 v Highest Ranked EF Winner
August 20: 1 v Lowest Ranked EF Winner or 2 v Highest Ranked EF Winner
GRAND FINAL
August 23: Winners Semi-Final v Winner Semi-Final 2