Wehdah and Al-Ta'awon were big losers Wednesday when the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) rejected their appeals against point reduction and huge fines. The appellate committee rejected the appeals following a six-hour meeting in Tabouk. Wehdah on 21 points will now be relegated while Al-Qadisiyah on 23 points moves back into the Premier League. Ta'awon on 32 points loses its place among the big eight clubs. Al-Faisali on 35 points will replace Ta'awon in the King's Cup. Wehdah and Ta'awon were reported to have been late in entering the field by nearly 12 minutes in their Round 26 league encounters. According to the referee, Ta'awon players were again late by two minutes in entering the field for the second half. The SAFF had issued a circular that all the last matches in the final round must start at 8:55 P.M. sharp to ensure fairplay. Wehdah President, Jamal Tunisi, expressed his anger over the decision and said the club would not stop attempting to regain “Wehdah's rights.”
