AFC Challenge Cup Qualifiers: Philippines vs Myanmar

1 — 1

Myanmar vs Philippines

March 21 @ 5PM (Philippine Time)

The match ended with a 1-1 draw.  What makes it a heartbreaking result is that Myanmar equalized during the last minute (literally!) of the stoppage time.  Last minute goals are pretty frustrating if you're the team leading in score.  'Coz you're there thinking, you've got it in the bag, just a few minutes more... and all of a sudden, you lose your lead and you barely have time left to get it back.  But, that's football for you... anything can happen.

I can't really say anything more about the match since there was no live telecast.  Myanmar did not grant our request for a live coverage of the game, we had to rely on twitter updates by people who were there (sucks, right?).  ABS-CBN will try to secure a copy of the video coverage of the match and the person who will be bringing the video to the Philippines will arrive here by Wednesday (Mar 25) morning and ABS will try to air it as soon as they can.

I’ll update you in case I’ll find photos of the game.

If you haven’t caught the live twitter updates, I’ve tried to collate the tweets of @craigburrows, @DYANCASTILLEJO, @cedelfpt, @philfootball and @PhilYHusband to get an “almost” minute-by-minute commentary (“almost” because internet connection in Myanmar is patchy). 

Here you go:

1^st Half

à 1 minute of silence for japan

à Kick off

            @cedelfpt: azkals in blue kits with Myanmar in red and white.  Etheridge in black

            @DYANCASTILLEJO: myanmar has the ball

            @DYANCASTILLEJO: corner kick for Myanmar and neil gets the ball

            @cedelfpt: angel strikes an imposing figure on the pitch.  First corner to myanmar.

à 3^rd minute

            @cedelfpt: Neil fumbles corner but recovers. oooh

            @DYANCASTILLEJO: good catch by myanmar goalie

            @DYANCASTILLEJO: foul by new spanish forward aldeguer guirado

à 5^th minute

            @cedelfpt: james sends a cross to ian but myanmar keeper safely holds on

à 6^th minute

@cedelfpt: #azkals on the backfoot in the first 6 mins. Bt defense looks stable.anton and rob centerbacks

à 8^th minute

            @cedelfpt: neil saves a glancing header from Yan Paing off a corner

à 9^th minute

            @cedelfpt: Myanmar’s first real chance.  Pai Soe 1-on-1 wd Neil, sends shot wide

à 11^th minute

            @cedelfpt: #azkals under real pressure. Another Pai Soe effort just wide

@cedelfpt: myanmar already has 4 chances.  They’ve been raiding flanks, esp right on gener’s side

à 14^th minute

            @cedelfpt: Pai Soe tests Neil again from 30 yards.  Easy save, still 0-0

            @cedelfpt: @DYANCASTILLEJO’s tweetdeck has stopped working

@craigburrows: Pai Soe shoots wide in a 1v1. Myanmar playing good football, come on #Azkals show your support Philippines!

            @cedelfpt: believe it or not, Chieffy Caligdong has yet to touch d ball

@craigburrows: Myanmar playing good football but Etheridge has kept them out.  Philippines look to counter and get a free kick, Myanmar clear

à 18^th minute

@cedelfpt: chieffy has touched the ball, albeit briefly.  Neil wd another save on header from Yang Paing

            @DYANCASTILLEJO: Neil saving many attempts

@craigburrows: Guirado is sent clear on the left wing, puts in an inviting cross but Myanmar defend well.  Lots of counter-attacking football

à 22^nd minute

@cedelfpt: chieffy wd steal bt touch to heavy, loses ball.  Angel (Guirado) wd cross bt no one gets touch on.  Still 0-0

@craigburrows: Greatwich brought down in the Azkals half.  Etheridge hits the freekick up and Guirado shows strength but Myanmar clear again

à 25^th minute

@cedelfpt: Pai Soe wd a cross, far post to Myo Min Tun wd a shot from 10 yards that goes wide.  0-0

@cedelfpt: its been a 1-way traffic for myanmar in first 25 min

@cedelfpt: Pai Soe again catches gener sleeping, another clear chance goes over d bar.

@craigburrows: Myanmar break and a cross is sent wide by MM Tun.  Myanmar get clear again and have a great chance but Pai Soe shoots over

à 30^th minute

@cedelfpt: Han Win Aun dispossessed by Chieffy again. Bt chance goes up in smoke,and Aung gets a jeers from home crowd.  0-0

            @DYANCASTILLEJO: Myanmar more than 7 attempts at goal boal

@craigburrows: Araneta gets through and has a chance but is called back for offside.  #Azkals moving forward now from a long defensive period

            @DYANCASTILLEJO: ball handling of myanmar very good getting through our defense

à 31^st minute

            @DYANCASTILLEJO: 31 minutes passed myanmar so many near goal…phils barely 2

à 32^nd minute

@cedelfpt: angel (Guirado) floats a dangerous cross after a 20-yard run wd stepovers. Great skill bt no 1 der to finish.

            @DYANCASTILLEJO: anghel (Guirado) had 1 from outside but too far…myanmar is fast

à 33^rd minute

@cedelfpt: no clear cut chance for #azkals yet

@DYANCASTILLEJO: anghel (Guirado) fighting for ball but lost it…ball mostly with myanmar but we’re trying

@DYANCASTILLEJO: thank GOD!!!!!another miss but almost goal so near…ball was high over goal corner now myanmar

@DYANCASTILLEJO: thank God another save by niel etheridge ball still with myanmar corner again for myanmar

à 35^th minute

@cedelfpt: gener beaten on right flank by d skipper Myo Min Tun, Ray clears dangerous cross. 0-0

à 36^th minute

@DYANCASTILLEJO: no goals…36 mins na 0-0

@cedelfpt: its a pity that phil and angel (Guirado) aren’t playing together should’ve been a great combination

@DYANCASTILLEJO: myanmar passing good,fast...calm oh no another one

à 39^th minute

@cedelfpt: james sends a low cross from right,but myanmar clears it

à 40^th minute

@DYANCASTILLEJO: 40 mins into game 0-0

à 41^st minute

@cedelfpt: myanmar’s wing play causing #azkals problems

à 43^rd minute

@DYANCASTILLEJO: 2 minutes to halftime

@philfootball: Couple more minutes before halftime

@DYANCASTILLEJO: players come to bench for water

@DYANCASTILLEJO: its very hot…players from -15 in Mongolia to +30 deg today…thats what sportsmen have to deal with

@cedelfpt: Yan Pain clutching his ankle. gets treatment. 1 additional minute injury time first half

@philfootball: +1 minute added time before halftime break

@cedelfpt: Myanmar free kick. Easily gathered. Halftime 0-0

2^nd Half

@DYANCASTILLEJO: 2^nd half just started

@philfootball: 2nd half!

@craigburrows: forgive the slow coverage, internet keeps crashing and blocking tweets.  Barseles replaces Araneta for the restart.

@DYANCASTILLEJO: @cedelfpt having connection problems. Half time change yanti (Barsales) for Ian (Araneta)

@craigburrows: back online and the game begins.  Both teams battling hard for the ball but lacking the final ball

@craigburrows: long throws have been dangerous all day but the Philippines clear and

have a penalty shoot denied.

@craigburrows: Borromeo cuts out a pass and the throw-in is cleared.  Myanmar shoot from distance but Etheridge watches it wide.

@craigburrows: #Azkals are more attackive minded now and put in a few crosses but they’re cleared.  Guirado chests down for James YH but saved.

@craigburrows: Pai Soe breaks again and puts in another cross.  Philippines clears and win a free kick in their half.  #Azkals more positive

@craigburrows: internet is holding up and chants run around the stadium.  H W Aung (DF) is replaced by S M OO (ST) – Myanmar look to attack.

@craigburrows: Pai Soe goes down the line and puts in a dangerous cross.  #Azkals clear and it’s a Myanmar throw.

@craigburrows: Cleared by the Phils and a long ball upfield is picked up by Myanmar who bring it forward.  Their attack filters out though.

à by this point, I think all three (@craigburrows, @DYANCASTILLEJO and @cedelfpt) have lost internet connection

à 65^th minute

@philfootball: 65^th min and still 0-0

à 72^nd minute

@philfootball: 72’ 0-0

à 73^rd minute

@philfootball: Red card for Myanmar 73’!

@craigburrows: spoke too soon about the internet.  After a gret 15 minutes it’s patchy again.  That means less updates I’m afraid.

à 76^th minute

@DYANCASTILLEJO: GOAL! Now Philippine 1-0 Myanmar

@philfootball: 76’ GOOOOOALLLLLL PHILIPPINES!!!

@PhilYHusband: Yes James!

@philfootball: 76’ GOAAALLLLL JAMES YOUNGHUSBAND!!!

@craigburrows: James Younghusband scores penalty!!!! 1-0 Philippines!!!!

à 81^st minute

@philfootball: 81’ MYA 0 v 1 PHILIPPINES. 1 red card for MYA. 76’ Goal for Philippines by James Younghusband @JHY53

à 85^th minute

@philfootball: 85’ still MYA 0 v 1 PHILIPPINES. A few more minutes before the final whistle!

à 88^th minute

@philfootball: 88’ MYA 0 v 1 PHILIPPINES!!!  Two more minutes guys!!!!!!!!!!!!!

à 90^th minute

@philfootball: 90’ MYA 0 v 1 PHILIPPINES! There might be a couple or three minutes of added time.

@PhilYHusband: Nooooooooooooo!

@philfootball: 90+’ MYA 1 v 1 PHILIPPINES!

@philfootball: FINAL SCORE MYA 1 v 1 PHILIPPINES

@PhilYHusband: 1-1 full time! :(

à 20 minutes after the game:

@craigburrows: internet issues but it’s back.  Myanmar score last minute equalizer.  FINAL SCORE: 1-1

@craigburrows: Sorry that we had problems with the internet.  Coach says it was a fair result.

@craigburrows: Absolutely exhausted and sorry to say photos are not good because of bright sunlight on one half shadow on the other

@craigburrows: Roy Moore was the star tweeting through the match.  I was photographer and not so good.

à 1 hour after the game

@cedelfpt: guys apologies for the non-tweets in 2^nd half. no connection.no tv coverage again on wed and fri

@anton_delro: Heartbreak! 1-1draw in the 90^th minute from a lucky free kick.  No bueno but we’ll keep on keepin’ on!  Game vs Palestine Wednesday!

@cedelfpt: same time game on wed and fri

@cedelfpt: Scorers: James Younghusband 76^th minute (PK) Khin Muang Lwin (90+2)


MATCH SUMMARY

UPDATE: check this link to see tweets from @DYANCASTILLEJO that were probably blocked or unposted because of the intermittent internet connection.  It explains how we got the Penalty Kick that scored our goal (poor Yanti Barsales... ouch!)

AFC Challenge Cup Pre-Qualifiers: Philippines vs. Mongolia 2nd Leg Recap

1 – 2

Philippines vs. Mongolia

It was a loss for the Azkals but they will still be advancing to the Qualifying Group Stage as they lead in the final aggregate score.  It was a different Blue Wolves that played in today’s match as they had more chances and more ball possession compared to how they performed in the 1^st Leg.

There were factors that could have influenced the outcome.  The obvious one is the freezing temperature.  Azkals are clearly not used to playing in really cold weather and it had a definite impact on their speed and agility.  Another possible factor could be the missing key players.  The Azkals’ defense was not as compact as I would have wanted it to be.  Could it be because Gier and De Jong were out?  Did Sabio need more practice time with the team so he’d have more seamless play with Borromeo?  Of course, Etheridge was also missing.  Sacapaño did okay but there were moments when he could just not lock down that save, like what happened in the 2^nd goal of Mongolia.

Did they re-arrange the positions a bit? I think Borromeo played more in defense in this match compared to  the 1^st leg where he was in attacking midfield (I’m not really sure what the other changes are).  

P. Younghusband was not in his top form, there were instances when he’d go to the sides and get some medical attention.  He got substituted in the 2^nd half and seemed to have injured his hamstring.  Wasn’t he injured in their Baguio practice game?

Over-all, it was great match with both sides having their chances in scoring, unlike the 1^st leg which was pretty much one-sided.  I like the pairing of commentators, one was an excitable announcer and the other one was this calm British guy.  At least this time, they didn’t call it a free throw J

Final Aggregate Score:

Philippines: 3

Mongolia: 2

Here are numbers:

Philippines		Mongolia
1	Goals scored	2
12	Shots on Goal	16
7	Free Kicks	6
1	Yellow Cards	2
0	Red Cards	0

Goals:

            3^rd minute – James Younghusband (Philippines)

            21^st minute – Lumbengarav Donorov (Mongolia)

            33^rd minute – Garidmagnai Bayasgalan (Mongolia)

So now, the Azkals will join Bangladesh, Myanmar and Palestine in Group A for the Qualifiers Group Stage.  Their next game will against Myanmar on March 21, 5PM in Philippine Time.

National Club Tournament in the Philippines

According to Filipino Football, PFF will host the first national club championship in five years.  This is pretty exciting news.  It's been a while since there was a national football tournament (except probably for school-based competitions like the Unigames).  What I can remember is the Philippine League Tournament.  Do we still have those?  Guess, I haven’t been active in the football scene for a long time now… And whatever happened to the Coke-Go-For-Goal Tournaments? They seemed to have stopped holding it...

I think holding national tournaments is a good idea.  But a another great idea would be to have football programs for little kids.  We need to get them interested and encourage the love for the sport at an early age.  And the earlier they start, the longer they get to train and improve on their skills.  Kinda like what Germany did, they focused on their youth system/teams, and now they have this new breed of exceptional players like Ozil, Polodski, Muller, et al.  Ideally, it would be great if it’s nationwide, but that could be a big undertaking for now.  Maybe some key cities, especially those with strong football communities and support like Ilo-ilo, Bacolod and Dumaguete. 

I also like what the Younghusband brothers are doing.  They are targeting the schools and the teachers.  This could be very effective, as teachers can influence the students.  If the teachers understand and appreciate football, they can better relate it to the students.  They can be great ambassadors for the sport.

Now that there has been a lot of attention and support (moral and financial), PFF’s challenge will now be to sustain this public interest and continue improving the ranking/skills/talent of current national squad and football in the country in general.  But at the same time, I hope they also think of long term plans in order to maintain interest in the sport and continuously advance our skills and talent for the game.

Shirtless Azkals!!!

I've always believed that football players have one of the hottest bodies in the field of sports...  And to prove my point, I present the Shirtless Series...

In honor of their win last Wednesday, I'm featuring the Azkals... (sorry, I can only find most of the 1^st 11 squad of last Wednesday's game)...


Ladies, are you ready?

......



Neil Etheridge, the goalkeeper





here's an unobstructed view

  
 

from any angle you look at, he is hot, hot, HOT



becuase he's just too hot, he deserves another look




Anton del Rosario





they should have all been shirtless... :(

 
 

partially covered by a towel :(



Anton del Rosario, is that you?

Roel Gener

Jason de Jong
damn bench.. >=|

Jason De Jong

I know he's not shirtless... but he's shortless, one letter difference won't matter :P

Jason De Jong
Horsin' around in the locker room.



James Younghusband
This picture is ___________________



Simon Greatwich
wow.

Phil Younghusband
lock me up with him and throw away the keys!

Phil Younghusband
This should be what all players ought be wearing (or not wearing) when they're in the locker room

two shirtless azkals... and a bed.
Neil Etheridge and Phil Younghusband

FIVE shirtless azkals in one pic!!!
James Younghusband, Ian Araneta, Simon Greatwich(?), Phil Younghusband and Aly Borromeo



If you think five was a lot...
Sorry, I can only identify Neil Etheridge, Rob Gier, Aly Borromeo, Chad Gould, Simon Greatwich and Anton del Rosario (don't know all my azkals yet)



You know how they take a picture of the squad right before the game starts?  They should have an after-the-game squad picture but they all have to be shirtless :)


Sorry, I couldn’t find shirtless pics of Ray Jonsson and Chieffy Caligdon, if you find any, please do share it.  Or if you have any other shirtless pics of other Azkals players.

Also, I don’t really know the cyber-rules in posting pictures from other sites, so to be safe (and if you want to see the original website), you can click the photo to get to the site where I “grabbed”/stole the pics from.

There are a lot more of shirtless pics of the Younghusband brothers in the internet but they’re easier to find compared to the rest of the azkals.  So if you want more shirtless pics of them, I leave the searching to you (happy hunting) :)

Azkals defeats Mongolia, 2-0

The Azkals' 1^st game for the AFC Challenge Cup Qualifier was amazing to watch with thousands of fans cheering for them. 

Here’s my “report” on the game (Before anything else, the number of shots on goal and the time mentioned below might not be very accurate, but I think it’s pretty close as this is based on my personal counting and tracking.  I guess we’re not at the World Cup or Champions League level yet with all the stats like Ball Possession Percentage, number of shots on goal against shots on target, etc available J.  I also hope I didn’t get the players mixed up.  I don’t have the names of the Mongolian players, so I’ll call them by number).

The starting line up for the Philippine squad is composed of Aly Borromeo (team captain, 11), Neil Etheridge (1), Anton Del Rosario (4), Rob Gier (2), Ray Jonnson (27), Emilio “Chieffy” Caligdon (co-captain, 13), James Younghusband (7), Jason de Jong (17), Phil Younghusband (10), Ian Araneta (23) and  Roel Gener (6).

Just as Coach Hans Michael Weiss planned, the Azkals came out attacking at the start of the game with skipper Aly Borromeo producing a shot on goal merely 4 minutes into the match.  From then on, the Azkals held on to this offensive strategy pushing back the Blue Wolves more and more into their side of the pitch.  Throughout the 1^st half, Azkals’ Del Rosario, P. Younghusband, Gener and Araneta had a total of seven shots on goal with a few on target.  But the Blue Wolves’ tight defense denied the Azkals’ goal attempts.  The Blue Wolves also had chances in scoring, although not as much as the Azkals, having only one shot on target that was blocked by Etheridge.  They twice broke through Azkals’ defense line but it was cleared by De Jong and the by Del Rosario, respectively.

The 1^st yellow card was awarded in the 14^th minute of the game with Mongolia’s Altantulga, for his challenge on P. Younghusband.  Altantulga would then receive another yellow card 6 minutes later for a free kick violation.  With two yellow cards, he was sent off the pitch.

In the last minutes of the 1^st half, Azkals’ Caligdong finally found the back of the net, scoring the first goal of the game during the 42^nd minute.  Right before the whistle was blown, Caligdon had one more shot on target but missed, hitting the post instead.

amazing ball control skils! chest trap, one touch on his left foot, setting it  up for a shot right between the goalie's legs

By 2^nd half, the Azkals intensified their offense generating 13 shots on goal (most of them on target) with Araneta contributing 6 of those shots.  But the Blue Wolves’ persisted in their defense and refusing to concede a goal.

The Blue Wolves lost two players to injury, number 5 in the 75^th minute and number 8 in the 79^th minute, leaving them down to 9 men.

The 2^nd half was also not without incident for the Azkals as P. Younghusband was booked for a handball violation earning him a yellow card.  But P. Younghusband redeemed himself by converting the set up by Sabio into the 2^nd and final goal of the game. 

great set up by Sabio

Here are my thoughts on the match (whatever it’s worth as I’m no expert, hehe):

The Azkals fought hard and strong and the final score could have been more with their countless scoring chances but the Blue Wolves really guarded their goal.

If I were to hazard a guess, ball possession was probably 65% Azkals and 35% Blue Wolves.

I don’t know anything about goalkeeping, but there were moments where Etheridge was just too high up the pitch for my comfort (I guess he probably got lonely in his post as his teammates were in their opponent’s side of the pitch most of the time)

Araneta was on fire during the 2^nd half with so many shots on target, too bad none of it hit the net… maybe in the next game..

I think the sports commentantors are so used to covering basketball games that one of them called it "free throw" instead of "throw in" without realizing it :)

I envy P. Younghusband's "banana kicks", I've always wanted to learn how to make the ball swerve when you kick it.

It would have been cool goal if that bicycle kick went in (was it Sabio who attempted that shot?)

Loved the combination of white shorts and a little light rain ;-) Would have even loved it more if some of the players swapped jerseys after the game, hehehe..

I wish I could’ve watched the match at the Panaad Stadium, it would have been great to be amongst fans and celebrate after the victory

The next qualifier game for the AFC Challenge Cup will be on March 15, still against Mongolia.