Questions have been raised about the timing of A-League matches, with players treated for heatstroke after an ALW match kicked off in temperatures of 35C.
Two Western United players were treated by medical staff at McKellar Park after their side’s 5-0 win against Canberra United, which got underway at 3pm on Saturday.
They were cleared at the ground by paramedics and the Western United medical team, and were not transferred to the hospital.
But it raised the issue of why the game was not pushed back to a later timeslot given the forecasted sweltering conditions.
The teams had a drinks break twice each half at 15-minute intervals.
Western Sydney’s ALW clash with Newcastle in Blacktown was pushed back from 3pm to 5.30pm due to warm weather concerns, with temperatures forecast for 34C.
Canberra coach Njegosh Popovich said the conditions posed a huge challenge and questioned the long-term effects of playing in extreme heat.
“There’s smarter people than me who have medical degrees, sports science degrees, who could probably come up with a better solution than the one we have at the moment,” he told AAP.
“I don’t know the commercially binding elements of it and how that plays in … some of the players will struggle to get back from this for two weeks.”
Western United player Angie Beard had earlier tweeted that her teammates were heading to the hospital for treatment, before more information was revealed.
“Proud of the effort by our girls to get the three points but also to both teams for enduring the heat of a 3pm KO in the middle of (Australian) summer,” she wrote.
“Two of my girls are hospital-bound with heat stroke but let’s keep pushing for middle of the day KOs.”
The Australian Professional Leagues’ heat policy calls for matches to be delayed or postponed if the ambient temperature approaches 40C and/or the wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) exceeds 28C.
Drink breaks are implemented if the ambient temperature is in excess of 31C and/or the WBGT is 26-27.9C.
Similar concerns were echoed in the A-League Men.
Western United boss John Aloisi labeled the decision to kick off in 33C heat at 5pm on Saturday as “ridiculous”.
Aloisi’s side played out a 2-2 draw with Macarthur at Campbelltown.
“Football people who play and coach aren’t listened to,” he said, adding the WBGT was just below the point of postponement prior to kick-off.
“They want to make it a good spectacle, but you can’t do that when players are struggling to run.
“It doesn’t invite a high-intensity game, you can’t ship the ball as quickly and it’s hard to play your style when it’s like that.”
Professional Footballers Australia have previously raised concerns about kick-off times at the height of summer.
The Australian Professional Leagues, the body responsible for running the A-League competitions, have been approached for comment.
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