North Korea banned reporters from watching a training session and speaking to players, deepening the sense of mystery swirling around the squad from the isolated nation.

Media gathered outside the Makhulong stadium outside Johannesburg to watch training and to interview members of the squad but police at the ground kept the gates locked and said the scheduled events had been cancelled.

Amid confusion, reporters were later allowed in through the green gates before the early evening session got under way.

But they were ushered out of the ground after the arrival of the red North Korean bus, sponsored by South Korea's Hyundai conglomerate and celebrating the team's achievements in their only previous World Cup appearance with the slogan "1966 again! Victory for DPR of Korea!"

An updated notice on the website of the game's governing body FIFA said: "Korea DPR (North Korea) has CLOSED the scheduled training session. There are no current media activities planned for today."

Police inspector Peter van der Merwe told reporters to leave the stadium after the team bus arrived and tried to prevent photographs being taken.

"It's going to be a very closed training session so please leave the stadium," he said.

Police said reporters would be allowed in to watch training on Tuesday.

While other teams have welcomed locals to watch them go through their paces, North Korea's training sessions have all been behind closed doors.

They have yet to give a press conference - even the customary post-match briefing to reporters on Sunday was scrapped - and a FIFA delegate attached to the team said there was no chance of grabbing a word.

The 2,000-1 rank outsiders made their debut on South African soil on Sunday in a friendly against Nigeria which garnered more headlines for the trouble off the pitch after 16 people were injured in a stampede by ticketless fans.

World Cup organisers sought to distance themselves Monday from the stampede outside the stadium in Tembisa township which raised new security fears in the final countdown to the tournament.

FIFA said the friendly had "no relation whatsoever with the operational organisation of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, for which we remain fully confident."

The incident came just hours after South African President Jacob Zuma announced that everything was ready for the tournament - the first World Cup to be played on African soil.

Makhulong, an all-terrace former first division ground which is not regularly used these days, is not one of the World Cup venues.

Drawn in the same group as Brazil, Ivory Coast and Portugal, the North Koreans are devoid of big names with only three of their squad based abroad.

Their qualification from the Asian group is their first since their famous adventure in the 1966 World Cup in England when they reached the quarter-finals where they were eventually beaten 5-3 by Portugal with the legendary Eusebio grabbing four goals.

Along the way, they beat Italy 1-0 as well as drawing with Chile.

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