ILOILO CITY - Philippines’ captain Emelio Caligdong provided the flash of inspiration yesterday, striking the only goal of a crucial 1-0 victory over Brunei in Group B of the AFC Challenge Cup Qualifying Tournament at the Iloilo Sports Complex pitch.
The match was marred by poor pitch conditions due to intermittent rains the past few days but Caligdong, the wily left winger from Barotac Nuevo, thrived as he quickly pounced on Chris Greatwich’s botched effort to slide home what turned out to be the game-winner in the 29th minute.
Dominant
It was a dominant display for the Filipinos, who saw four efforts hit the post and Phil Younghusband failing to convert on a second-half penalty kick, after substitute Ian Araneta was brought down inside the box.
Philippines coach Norman Fegidero expressed satisfaction on his squad’s performance, but hinted they would be playing more defensively against defending champion Tajikistan, 3-1 winner over Bhutan in Barotac Nuevo town yesterday.
“It was a good result for us. But it is going to be different against Tajikistan,” the former national player said.
“It should have been 6-0 against Brunei but the condition of the pitch made it difficult for us to attack,” Fegidero added.
But the Philippines dominated the match for long spells and Caligdong, defender Joebel Bermejo, strikers Ian Araneta and Chad Gould were denied by the crossbar once in either side of the half.
A veteran of three Asean Football Championships, the 5-foot-5 Caligdong proved to be the menace early and in the 19th minute, he was involved in the Philippines’ first real chance.
Stalled
Caligdong received Younghusband’s layoff from six yards but his effort was parried away by the keeper. Greatwich made the follow up only for the water infront of goal minimizing the power on his shot, allowing Brunei to clear their lines.
Caligdong’s persistence was rewarded in the 29th minute. After Chris Greatwich couldn’t get a strong shot off Chad Gould’s lay-off, Caligdong rushed in to beat Brunei defender Abdul Ahad to the ball and slid home.
There were some flashes of brilliance on defense, too. Aly Borromeo coming out of nowhere to deny Ramlee Awangku a clear path on goal and debuting goalkeeper Neil Etheridge foiling Awangku in a one-on-one opportunity in first half injury time.
Brunei’s Korean coach Kwon Oh-Son was happy with his team’s performance, despite the loss. “Our players played aggressively until the end,” he said.(PFF Media Bureau)
