Hype-ball

I'm all for getting the word out but when that puke-inducing message is obviously hype and nothing substantive, then it gets immensely irritating. TriAsia Phnom Penh FC are a newly-established club, with Japanese coffee money behind them. They have bought their way into the play-offs later this year where they expect to get promotion to the Metfone C-League for next season. In the meantime, they have been playing a few friendlies. Where the hype begins to grate is that each friendly is given a name of a cup competition and the attempt is to make it appear something much more than it really is, from television and radio coverage to half-time giveaways, music shows and cup final-style presentations at the end of the game. Who are they trying to kid? TriAsia are a team of young players who may do well in the future, but their presentation style is cringeworthy. Their opening game was in the Soken Cup, against a team from Boribo, a small town near the Tonle Sap Lake and they won 7-0 to a loud fanfare. Next they played a Muslim team from Kandal in the Brave Cup, and won 6-1. On Monday next week they meet the U-19 team from Svay Rieng under the auspices of the Sieg Cup. How about they meet NagaCorp, the Hun Sen Cup winners (which is a real competition) and call it The Cup Cup, just to keep the farce going. I'm all for a new team making their way up the football ladder fairly but the hype surrounding TriAsia is simply too much to stomach. It's a marketing strategy gone bonkers. I don't recall Boeung Ket, Senate or AEU making this fuss over nothing when they were seeking to steer a path into the top flight.