The Matildas’ scheduled Olympic qualifiers in Sydney will still go ahead next week, the FFA has confirmed, despite the Chinese team remaining quarantined in a Brisbane hotel due to coronavirus concerns.
The games were originally slated to be played in Wuhan, but were moved to Sydney when the Chinese city was put on lockdown.
The Chinese team is still in isolation in Brisbane, and will not be able to participate until after February 5. It forced a reshuffle in the fixturing, but the FFA said conversations with all parties had found a “positive solution”. “FFA very much appreciates the collaborative approach displayed by everyone to re-schedule the Olympic qualification tournament,” FFA chief executive James Johnson said in a statement. The Matildas’ match against China at Campbelltown Stadium has been pushed back to February 12. Australia will also play matches against fellow Group B rivals Chinese Taipei on February 6 and Thailand on February 9 in Parramatta. The winner of group B will play the runner-up of Group A, with the runner-up to play Group A’s winner. Those playoffs will be home and away legs, with the two winners of the playoffs qualifying for the Olympics alongside hosts Japan.
The Group A games are being played in South Korea. There are only three teams in Group A — South Korea, Myanmar and Vietnam — after North Korea pulled out in December. The Matildas will be looking to join Australia’s U23 men’s side in Tokyo, after the Olyroos qualified for the Olympics for the first time since 2008 last Saturday night.
