Bohs return fire on 'disgraceful' Levadia
from onefootball.comTuesday 17th July 2001
The war between Champions' League rivals Bohemians and Levadia Maardu was cranked up another notch when the Dubliners arrived in Estonia for their second leg tie and immediately complained about their weed-covered training pitch.
And Irish anger was not eased when they were asked to pay for the privilege of training on the ground, which all adds up to another tense evening of Champions' League football.
Bohs hold the advantage from the first leg thanks to their 3-0 win in Dublin, but the game was marked by controversy as the start of the match was almost delayed because of Estonian complaints about the size and structure of the goalposts in Bohs' Dalymount Park home. Levdaia then lodged an official complaint with Uefa, which was thrown out by European football's governing body.
Bohs arrived in Tallinn on Monday morning but were immediately outraged when they saw their training facilities at Kalev stadium, home of Estonian Premiership side TVMK, which they considered unfit to play on. Bohs opted instead for a game of Gaelic football to fool the Levadia spies.
"The pitch we were given to train on was an absolute disgrace and to add insult to injury, they charged us £35 for the pleasure of using it," manager Pete Mahon told the Irish Sun.
"It was dreadful. The surface was full of weeds. There wasn't blade of grass on it and I was a bit apprehensive to allow the lads to train there to begin with, but decided to make the best of what we had.
"It would have suited them [Levadia] for us to have gone off in a huff. They are doing everything they can to put us off our game but it won't work. We are here for a game of football and nothing will deflect from that.
"But we won't be using the same training facilities again. The pitch we were given is just around the corner from our hotel but we will be going elsewhere for the rest of our stay."
Mahon had good news over injury worries Shaun Maher and Paul Byrne, though star striker Trevor Molloy is of course still suspended, and the Bohs boss also used the training session to fool the Estonian spies.
"They hadn't a clue what we were doing when we played a game of Gaelic football. They looked totally bemused. We didn't get to do what we would normally do, but the lads got a work out all the same and it was worth it to see the look on their faces."
It should be a case of 'as you were' for Bohs as they seek the win in Estonia which would be their third successive away win in Europe, following last season's successes in Aberdeen and Kaiserslautern.
That means another start for teenage right back Brian Shelley in place of Euro veteran Tony O'Connor, though left back Simon Webb will know that he had a below-par display in Dublin and will want to improve.
Bohs proved in last season's Uefa Cup that they can win away from home, and although Levadia created some moments of danger in the closing minutes in Dublin, the Dubliners should not only advance to the next round but should also boost the Irish Euro rating with another win.
Captain Igor Prins and playmaker Dmitry Kirilov return for Levadia Maardu.
£35 to train on a cabbage patch!!
I like it
from soccercentral
Bohemians boss Pete Mahon knows that the best possible way of rising above the childish and unprofessional antics of Levadia Maaru is to complete the Champions League job begun with a 3-0 win at Dalymount with another win in the second-leg.
Officials from Bohs were disgusted by the continuing poor behaviour of the home team – unbelievably, Mahon was asked to fork out hard cash to train on a cabbage patch pitch.
“The pitch we were given to train on was an absolute disgrace and to add insult to injury, they charged us £35 for the pleasure of using it," he said.
"It was dreadful. There wasn't blade of grass on it and there were weeds everywhere you looked. Dreadful really and to tell you the truth , I was a bit nervous about allowing my lads to train on it.
"I’m sure our hosts would have been more than happy if we stromed off in a huff. They are doing everything they can to put us off our game but it won't work. We are here for a game of football and nothing will deflect from that.
"They hadn't a clue what we were doing when we played a game of Gaelic football.
They looked totally bemused. We didn't get to do what we would normally do, but the lads got a work out all the same and it was worth it to see the look on their faces."
"We're all going to be judged by results and that means getting through another round in this competition. We need to be disciplined and patient, particularly early on when they'll come at us."
"But even if they score, I won't be worried unduly as I fancy us to score a goal. We're an attack-minded team and it's not just about Glen Crowe either. We've got Alex Nesovic, Mark Rutherford, Paul Byrne, and others, who can chip in with a goal."
Mahon had good news over injury worries Shaun Maher and Paul Byrne who are both fit enough to play.
