Organisers of the Under 20s Women's Asian Cup in Uzbekistan have faced backlash from football fans after the Young Matildas were forced to play their opening match against Korea Republic on a snow-covered pitch.
The Young Matildas came from behind to pull off a resilient 2-1 victory over Korea Republic on Sunday night.
However, viewers were ropable with the amount of snow blanketing the middle of the pitch.
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Attempts were made to clear parts of the pitch, with the sidelines and markings of the centre circle visible.
However, fans on social media were quick to question why the entire field was not cleared in preparation for the match, especially in the interest of player safety.
In terrible scenes, players were seen digging through the snow in the middle of the pitch to uncover the penalty areas and the ball was repeatedly compromised as it became stuck in the ankle-deep snow.
Former Matilda Amy Chapman and midfielder Alex Chidiac were among the most vocal online.
"I am still not comprehending this. How is this game happening?," Chapman wrote on X.
"Nice little cruyff turn in there- but this is insane. Player safety must come first."
Chidiac added to the discussion: "How is this okay to play in?"
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The cold and snowy conditions in Uzbekistan's capital of Tashkent were not exactly a shock, with senior Matildas player Amy Sayer, who plays her club football for Kristianstads DFF in Sweden, telling the Matildas' website ahead of the side's Olympic qualifier how the cold climate and presence of snow could impact the match.
"It takes a lot of mental fortitude to push through [those conditions]," she said.
"There will be some differences in how the ball rolls, how the field feels to us.
"But I think that the strength of this team is so great. We can really push through any condition, whether it's two feet of snow or whatever else Uzbekistan might throw at us."
https://twitter.com/battledinosaur/status/1764199189460955393?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfwhttps://twitter.com/M1D3V/status/1764204866182983943?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Australia trailed 1-0 at half time after a goal from Jeon Yu-Gyeong in the 25th minute.
However, Australia rallied in the second half with Peta Trimis levelling the scores in the 73rd minute before Naomi Chinnama booted a 90th-minute winner.
The Young Matildas' second-half goals were sparked by changes at the main break from coach Leah Blayney, including the injection of Lara Gooch.
With the win, Australia shot to the top of Group A with matches still to come against Uzbekistan and Chinese Taipei.
The team will next face Uzbekistan on Wednesday night.
In similar scenes, Los Angeles FC and Real Salt Lake played out their Major League Soccer match in heavy snow on Sunday, triggering backlash.
"I feel terrible for the players that we put them through this," Los Angeles FC manager Steve Cherundolo said post-match.
"The game could have and should have been called [off]. In my opinion, it was an absolute disgrace we had to play today."
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