All Whites abandon Qatar game after claims player was racially abused

By Michael Burgess

The All Whites match with Qatar has ended in bizarre circumstances on Tuesday, with the New Zealand side refusing to take the field in the second half, after alleged racial abuse.

The All Whites were leading 1-0 at halftime – thanks to an impressive Marko Stamenic strike – when the match was abandoned.

The incident, which wasn’t caught on camera, happened just before the break, with defender Michael Boxall the apparent victim.

It happened in the 40th minute. Yusuf Abdurisag went to ground after giving a pass, claiming a foul by Joe Bell. There wasn’t much in it, maybe a slight body check, but the referee gave a free kick.

Boxall walked over to remonstrate with the referee, then said something to Abdurisag, still sitting on the ground. The Qatari then got up and walked towards Boxall, saying something which caused almost half of the New Zealand team to react, as they were in earshot. Boxall marched angrily towards his opponent, while several New Zealand players appeared to be asking the referee, ‘did you hear what he said?’

It led to a melee of players, as the incensed New Zealand side surrounded one of the Qatari players before a free kick. Referee Manuel Schuttengruber took no action, despite an extended chat with skipper Joe Bell, with the halftime whistle blown soon afterwards.

The two teams then left the field, with the All Whites deciding, after a team meeting, not to return.

It’s a dramatic step, especially given the lack of opportunities the New Zealand side get to assemble and the fact that Qatar was hosting the fixture.

Earlier today an under-21 international between Ireland and Kuwait was abandoned over claims of an Irish substitute being abused.

Last week FIFA boss Gianni Infantino announced they’d be setting up an anti-racism taskforce featuring Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior after he had suffered racial abuse during matches.

“There is no football if there is racism – so let’s stop the games. The referees have this opportunity in FIFA competitions as we have this process for stopping the game, and actions have to be taken at every level, at national level as well,” Infantino said.

“It’s a football-related problem and we mustn’t look for excuses like: ‘It’s society’s problem, therefore, it’s fine in football.’ In the world of football, we must act in a very forceful way,” Infantino said.

“We want to identify racists in stadiums and across social media. They are criminals. They have to be banned from stadiums across the globe. The authorities need to take these people to court and we will say this to all of them. Racism is a crime,” he added.

It was an unfortunate end to what had been an entertaining contest, with the repercussions likely to reach the halls of Fifa, as it is reviewed by their various committees.

Bazeley had made four changes to the starting XI from the game in Stockholm. Max Mata and Marco Rojas came in for Ben Waine and Elijah Just in the attacking trio, while Nando was used at centre back, with Bill Tuiloma shifted to right full back and Tim Payne moving to the bench. And Max Crocombe was used in goal – his first international match since June 2018 – after a strong season at Grimsby Town.

The match was played in the Austrian countryside, after the Qatari organisers shifted the game to a 5,000 seat facility in Ritzing, about 100km outside Vienna.

After Qatar had shaded the early exchanges, the All Whites took the lead in the 17th minute, thanks to a sweet strike from Marko Stamenic from just outside the area. Matt Garbett had led the breakout, finding Rojas, who drew a couple of defenders, before laying back to Stamenic. The Red Star Belgrade midfielder did the rest, finding the bottom corner with a mix of power and precision for his first senior international goal.

Qatar should have equalised eight minutes later, after Nando Pijnaker was robbed near halfway, dwelling for a moment too long, but Al-Moez Ali found the base of the post from 12 yards, with only the goalkeeper to beat.

There was another escape soon afterwards, with Crocombe saving well from Yousuf Abdurisag, after an errant Rojas pass invited another quick Qatari counter.

The Colo Colo midfielder then had two great opportunities to extend the New Zealand lead before halftime. The first came after the All Whites beat the offside trap, but Rojas lacked conviction in his effort, as the goalkeeper closed down the space.

The second was just as frustrating. Rojas confidently advanced into the area but scooped his shot over the bar, when a decent strike would have had the keeper scrambling.

Then came the incident that will go down in New Zealand football notoriety. A Qatari player was fouled near the All Whites penalty area, before words were exchanged, with pushing and shoving. It was first thought to be innocuous – the usual mid game disagreement – but turned out to be so much more.

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission