Young Azkals finish third
THE Philippines beat Brunei, 2-1, but saw its bid of advancing to the AFF U23 Championship semifinals going down the drain following Timor-Leste’s 1-0 victory over host Cambodia at the end of Group A action Sunday night in Phnom Penh.
The Young Azkals finished third with four points, behind the Timorese, who won the group with seven points, and the Cambodians, who dropped to second place with six points.
Dennis Chung and Sandro Reyes scored second-half goals for the Philippines, which overcame Brunei’s best performance of the tournament.
Brunei pulled one back via Muhammad Hakeme Yazid Zaid’s 59th minute strike but it was not enough to inspire the squad to nail a point.
“We made hard work of this game. We created chances but we missed many of them. We scored two goals but we let Brunei come back,” said Young Azkals coach Stewart Hall.
“At the very least, we finished the competition on a high with some players making their international debut,” he added.
Using the regional competition as part of its Hanoi Southeast Asian Games preparations, the Philippines hopes to catch up if it wants to figure prominently in the biennial meet in May.
A Cambodia own goal early in the first half was enough for Timor-Leste to secure semifinal qualification by topping Group A.
Prior to the victory, the Young Azkals battled to a 2-2 draw with the Timorese and dropped a 0-1 decision to the Cambodians.
