World soccer gets its first experience of FIFA?s new harmonised international calendar this weekend. The African Nations Cup qualifiers form part of a busy worldwide weekend of internationals, which include the opening qualifiers for the European Championships.

The new calendar was introduced to satisfy the anger of the powerful European club lobby, whose influence in world football politics has become even stronger as the UEFA Champions League competition has grown into a worldwide television event.

The clubs were angry that they lost many of their foreign players mostly African and South American footballers to international duty when they were needed for club commitments.

FIFA have now agreed to act and brought in the calendar. The move was supposed to have put an end to the club versus country conflict.

However, a new tactic is emerging to continue to allow clubs to block African countries from getting their best players. It can be called the 'sick note'; a doctor's letter that insists a player is injured and cannot travel back to his continent.

It has happened this week with Lucas Radebe and Siyabonga Nomvete in the South African side, and there is little the African Federations can do about it.

If a doctor's note says they can't travel then the validity of the note has to be accepted, even if the doctor is on the payroll of the club.

Short of actually flying to the player's club and conducting an independent examination, there is no way for the African countries to prove otherwise.