The USWNT explained their decision to cancel Sunday’s match in Hawaii. (Photo Copyright Erica McCaulley for The Equalizer)
In a post on The Players’ Tribune, the U.S. women’s national team detailed the decision to call off Sunday night’s victory tour friendly against Trinidad & Tobago at Aloha Stadium in Hawaii. The match was officially postponed in the wee hours of Sunday morning–just after midnight in Hawaii–following a training session on the pitch slated to host the match.
“The conditions were such that our coach shortened practice to a brief, 30-minute training session so we wouldn’t risk injury before the game,” the post reads. “There were sharp rocks ingrained all over the field. They were everywhere. The artificial turf was actually pulling up out of the ground, and the turf itself was both low-grade and aging.”
The post, which can be seen here, also mentions that Megan Rapinoe’s torn ACL suffered a day earlier, took place on a “subpar training field.” The post also specifies that the issue was not about playing on turf as opposed to grass, but about fair and equal practices for both men’s and women’s matches. U.S. Soccer has acknowledged they did not inspect the surface at Aloha Stadium ahead of the match.
The victory tour is scheduled to resume Thursday in San Antonio against Trinidad & Tobago.
U.S. coach Jill Ellis and forward Abby Wambach also discussed the cancellation of the match on FS1, with Wambach noting that Rapinoe’s injury was in the back of players’ minds:
.@AbbyWambach and Jill Ellis explain what led to @ussoccer canceling tonight's #USWNT game in Honolulu. https://t.co/F2Dv2I3Jrh
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 7, 2015
