The medical evacuation plan by which sick or injured players and officials involved in the World Youth Cup in Nigeria are supposed to be airlifted to Geneva got its first taker yesterday. But only after the local organisers showed why FIFA had felt it necessary to put the contingency in place.

James Crocker, an Australian FA administrator, collapsed on Sunday in his room at the same hotel where the Irish squad is staying. A heart attack was suspected and an ambulance was called immediately. But when it arrived and the crew attempted to give Crocker some oxygen, it was discovered that the tank was empty. A second tank was sent for, but this time the spanner brought to open it was the wrong size, so they decided to start moving without gas. Unfortunately, before the patient could be moved from his floor of the hotel, the lift failed. The problems didn't end there. Crocker was transferred to a local hospital where the doctors were on strike. After a brief stop, for reasons unknown, he was transferred on to Lagos and is now recovering in Switzerland.