The Wellington Phoenix have been forced to change the start time of Saturday's A-League football clash against Adelaide because of inadequate lighting at the Hutt Recreation Ground.
The Phoenix' Jason Hicks celebrates a goal at the Hutt Recreation Ground. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
The kick-off has been brought forward from 7pm to 5pm.
The decision was taken after lighting standards at the temporary stadium, a replacement for Westpac Stadium which was unavailable due to the cricket world cup, did not meet the stipulated standards agreed with FFA in approving the venue.
Wellington Phoenix General Manager David Dome says the Club had worked very hard to try to come to a solution and avoid a change in kick off time.
Dome says the feedback has been excellent to date on what they have achieved, unfortunately a night time kick off with the constraints around the temporary infrastructure was just something they couldn't resolve.
He says they've had lighting experts from around the country assist them over a long period of time, but there just wasn't the lights available in the country.
