Well, this is a bit awkward.
The season-opening Super Cup a week Saturday? Never mind. The Arabian Gulf League kick-off four days later? Not happening.
The whole of the 2015/16 league season will be backed up a month. First match, probably September 21 instead of August 19. The Super Cup? September 14 or 15 instead of August 15.
Fans must be tempted to shake their heads and marvel at the consistent inconsistency of the country's top flight, where the fixtures list is more a suggestion than a promise. A sort of working document to be amended on the fly.
But the AGL should not be too heavily criticised. Most of its strange scheduling has its origin in the requirements of the national team and that is run by the Football Association – which is understandably keen to have its men in peak form for international assignments. Such as qualifying for the 2018 World Cup.
This current fixtures mess is sourced even further away from the league office – in Kuwait.
The first whack at a 2015/16 fixtures list was published on July 26, back when league officials believed the Gulf Cup of Nations would be played, in Kuwait, from December 22 to January 4.
On Monday, Kuwait officials said they would not be ready to put on the Gulf Cup on those dates and the semi-annual (in theory), eight-nation competition will be backed up to December 2016 at the earliest.
That led to falling dominoes, with the AGL scrambling to make sense of an unexpected set of dates.
As always, the AGL does not work in a vacuum.
Two days ago, Mahdi Ali, the national team coach, expected his players would get a league match in the August 19-21 time frame, ahead of the September 3 World Cup qualifier at home to Malaysia and the September 8 date away to Palestine.
The new AGL schedule, however it turns out, will not provide that high-calibre test, meaning national team players – aside from those who play for Al Ahli, who have an Asian Champions League quarter-final first-leg match away to Naft Tehran on August 26 – will go into the qualifier against Malaysia without a serious match since June 16.
Not only the AGL is dealing with unexpected developments. The Saudi Professional League also planned on an early start, on August 19 and, presumably, the schedule makers in Riyadh were busy yesterday.
The one upside to the one-month delay is that it removes 30 days of high temperatures from the fixtures list, which is good news for players on the pitch and fans in the stands.
It is also better for the pace of the league, because that 32-day, December-January break in league play can be reduced.
The takeaway here is how fiendishly difficult it is for a league in this region to create to a fixtures list that works.
For AGL officials it means accommodating 26 league and six league cup matches per club – but also leaving room for a Super Cup, four rounds of President’s Cup, the semi-finals and final of the league cup, the Asian Champions League, the Gulf Club Cup, national team obligations and, until they back it up a year, tournaments like the Gulf Cup.
It is something of a miracle it gets done at all. But it always does and it will this season.
poberjuerge@thenational.ae
Follow us on Twitter at @NatSportUAE
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
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Tips for newlyweds to better manage finances
All couples are unique and have to create a financial blueprint that is most suitable for their relationship, says Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer at Century Financial. He offers his top five tips for couples to better manage their finances.
Discuss your assets and debts: When married, it’s important to understand each other’s personal financial situation. It’s necessary to know upfront what each party brings to the table, as debts and assets affect spending habits and joint loan qualifications. Discussing all aspects of their finances as a couple prevents anyone from being blindsided later.
Decide on the financial/saving goals: Spouses should independently list their top goals and share their lists with one another to shape a joint plan. Writing down clear goals will help them determine how much to save each month, how much to put aside for short-term goals, and how they will reach their long-term financial goals.
Set a budget: A budget can keep the couple be mindful of their income and expenses. With a monthly budget, couples will know exactly how much they can spend in a category each month, how much they have to work with and what spending areas need to be evaluated.
Decide who manages what: When it comes to handling finances, it’s a good idea to decide who manages what. For example, one person might take on the day-to-day bills, while the other tackles long-term investments and retirement plans.
Money date nights: Talking about money should be a healthy, ongoing conversation and couples should not wait for something to go wrong. They should set time aside every month to talk about future financial decisions and see the progress they’ve made together towards accomplishing their goals.
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Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
The Buckingham Murders
Starring: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ash Tandon, Prabhleen Sandhu
Director: Hansal Mehta
Rating: 4 / 5
Her most famous song
Aghadan Alqak (Would I Ever Find You Again)?
Would I ever find you again
You, the heaven of my love, my yearning and madness;
You, the kiss to my soul, my cheer and
sadness?
Would your lights ever break the night of my eyes again?
Would I ever find you again?
This world is volume and you're the notion,
This world is night and you're the lifetime,
This world is eyes and you're the vision,
This world is sky and you're the moon time,
Have mercy on the heart that belongs to you.
Lyrics: Al Hadi Adam; Composer: Mohammed Abdel Wahab
Results
4pm: Al Bastakiya Listed US$300,000 (Dirt) 1,900m; Winner: Emblem Storm, Oisin Murphy (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).
4.35pm: Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Wafy, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
5.10pm: Nad Al Sheba Turf Group 3 $350,000 (Turf) 1,200m; Winner: Wildman Jack, Fernando Jara, Doug O’Neill.
5.45pm: Burj Nahaar Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Salute The Soldier, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.
6.20pm: Jebel Hatta Group 1 $400,000 (T) 1,800m; Winner: Barney Roy, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 $600,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Matterhorn, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.
7.30pm: Dubai City Of Gold Group 2 $350,000 (T) 2,410m; Winner: Loxley, Mickael Barzalona, Charlie Appleby.
Indoor Cricket World Cup
Venue Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE squad Saqib Nazir (captain), Aaqib Malik, Fahad Al Hashmi, Isuru Umesh, Nadir Hussain, Sachin Talwar, Nashwan Nasir, Prashath Kumara, Ramveer Rai, Sameer Nayyak, Umar Shah, Vikrant Shetty
RESULTS
Bantamweight title:
Vinicius de Oliveira (BRA) bt Xavier Alaoui (MAR)
(KO round 2)
Catchweight 68kg:
Sean Soriano (USA) bt Noad Lahat (ISR)
(TKO round 1)
Middleweight:
Denis Tiuliulin (RUS) bt Juscelino Ferreira (BRA)
(TKO round 1)
Lightweight:
Anas Siraj Mounir (MAR) bt Joachim Tollefsen (DEN)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 68kg:
Austin Arnett (USA) bt Daniel Vega (MEX)
(TKO round 3)
Lightweight:
Carrington Banks (USA) bt Marcio Andrade (BRA)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 58kg:
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) bt Malin Hermansson (SWE)
(Submission round 2)
Bantamweight:
Jalal Al Daaja (CAN) bt Juares Dea (CMR)
(Split decision)
Middleweight:
Mohamad Osseili (LEB) bt Ivan Slynko (UKR)
(TKO round 1)
Featherweight:
Tarun Grigoryan (ARM) bt Islam Makhamadjanov (UZB)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 54kg:
Mariagiovanna Vai (ITA) bt Daniella Shutov (ISR)
(Submission round 1)
Middleweight:
Joan Arastey (ESP) bt Omran Chaaban (LEB)
(Unanimous decision)
Welterweight:
Bruno Carvalho (POR) bt Souhil Tahiri (ALG)
(TKO)
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