Love-less Phil hits 2 goals in 2 minutes

In a magical moment, Phil Younghusband scored two goals in a two-minute span to highlight a sensational 6-goal performance that helped power the Loyola Meralco Sparks to a 9-0 drubbing of Navy and into the knockout stage of the United Football League (UFL) Cup Sunday night at the Emperador Stadium in McKinley Hill.

The Philippine Azkals striker struck in the 48th, 49th, 59th, 67th, 72nd and 76th minutes to propel the Sparks to their second win in as many matches and tie idle Green Archers United for the lead in Group E with six points apiece.

Younghusband’s exploits came in his first match since announcing his breakup with actress Angel Locsin.

His six-goal performance was Younghusband’s best since scoring seven against Team Soccerroo in the 2011 UFL Cup.

Meanwhile, defending champion Stallion FC and newly relegated second division side Air Force beat separate rivals to join Loyola in the knockout stage.

Stallion drew goals from Reuben Doctora, Bo Bae Park and Jeremy Taylor John to defeat Bright Star FC, 3-1, while Ian Araneta, Neckson Leonora and Randy Bela-Ong scored in Air Force’s 3-0 beating of Agila FC.

Both clubs are tied for second place in Group C with six points apiece, trailing surprise leader Cebu Queen City United by one point.

The once mighty Air Force booters, who won the UFL Cup in 2009 and 2011, earned a return trip to the knockout stage after being eliminated in the group stage last year.

In the other match, Abdou Moussa Obono scored a hat trick as Dolphins United thrashed Blue Guards FC, 11-1, to revive its flickering hopes of making the knockout stage. It was the club’s first win in three matches.

source: mb.com.ph

Caligdong, Malditas lead Football Para sa Bayan

Telecommunications company Globe Telecom is set to hold the Globe Football Para sa Bayan Mini Festival on Oct. 26 at the DLSU Zobel Globe Football Field in Ayala Alabang.

The event is a gathering of key movers in the football scene who want to assist disadvantaged youth and help in nation-building through sports.

“We want to capitalize on the sport of football as an intervention tool for children in underserved communities.  Sports is a way to develop the children’s well-being and may also open doors for them to a better life,” said Fernando Esguerra, Globe OIC for Corporate Social Responsibility.

The one day celebration will be front-lined by Azkals Team Captain and Globe Ambassador Chieffy Caligdong together with his teammates in Green Archers United, one of the most competitive teams in the United Football League.  Joining them are members of the women’s national football team, more commonly known as Malditas and teen varsity football players from La Salle Zobel and La Salle Greenhills.

The pool of committed coaches and football mentors will facilitate drills and scrimmages for six football communities catering to disadvantaged children, namely: Gawad Kalinga FC, Dream Big Pilipinas FA, Futkal FC, Payatas FC, Muntinlupa United FC, and Pinay FC.

Globe Football Para Sa Bayan Mini Fest is a soft launch and preview to the year-round football campaign of the company in 2014 which will be composed of all partners working together to bring the program around the country to impact nation-building in a big way.

Football is just the first step in Globe sports advocacy as the company continues to develop various sports programs for its CSR communities.

source: manilastandardtoday.com

Globe holds football festival on Saturday

Globe Telecom is set to hold the Globe Football Para sa Bayan Mini Festival on Saturday, Oct. 26 at the DLSU Zobel Globe football field in Ayala Alabang.

The event is a gathering of key movers in the football scene who want to assist disadvantaged youth and help in nation-building through sports.

“We want to capitalize on the sport of football as an intervention tool for children in underserved communities. Sports is a way to develop the children’s well-being and may also open doors for them to a better life,” said Fernando Esguerra, Globe OIC for Corporate Social Responsibility.

The one-day celebration will be front-lined by Azkals team captain and Globe Ambassador Chieffy Caligdong together with his teammates in Green Archers United. Joining them are members of the women’s national football team, commonly known as Malditas and teen varsity football players from La Salle Zobel and La Salle Greenhills.

A pool of coaches will facilitate drills and scrimmages for six football communities catering to disadvantaged children, namely: Gawad Kalinga FC, Dream Big Pilipinas FA, Futkal FC, Payatas FC, Muntinlupa United FC, and Pinay FC.

Globe Football Para Sa Bayan Mini Fest is a soft launch and preview to the year-round football campaign of the company in 2014.

Football is just the first step in Globe sports advocacy as the company continues to develop various sports programs for its CSR communities.

Earlier, Globe officially unveiled its sports advocacy program, Globe Sports, by announcing its full support for Malditas and Muzang, the Philippine national futsal team.

Prior to the official launching of its sports advocacy, Globe also sponsored GAU FC in the United Football League, DLSU Greenhills Football Team, and a number of futsal tournaments.

Azkals now ranked No. 1 in Southeast Asia

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines on Thursday leap-frogged to its best-ever standing in the International Football Federation (Fifa) world rankings and spiked this latest achievement with its emergence as the new No. 1 nation in Southeast Asia.

Fresh from ruling the Phl Peace Cup in Bacolod, the Pinoy booters received another milestone as they vaulted into 137th spot in the Fifa’s latest monthly list – their highest since the introduction of the ranking list in 1993.

With this new position, Phl also zoomed to the top of the table among Asean nations, bumping off Thailand (142nd), Myanmar (149th), Vietnam (151st), reigning AFF Suzuki Cup champion Singapore (155th), Malaysia (160th), Indonesia (162nd), Laos (167th), Brunei and Timor Leste (joint 163rd) and Cambodia (198th).

The Azkals earned 129 ranking points from their 3-1 victory over Pakistan in the last day of the Peace Cup, a win that’s one for the books as they crawled back from a 0-1 deficit and secured the needed two-goal margin to claim the title.

 “This is the result of the hard work and sacrifice of those involved with the national team, particularly the players and the support of the Philippine Football Federation,” said Azkals manager Dan Palami.

“Getting the top ranking in Southeast Asia has been our goal since we started with the national team. I’m glad that our efforts have been rewarded,” he added.

PFF president Nonong Araneta, for his part, said: “We hope that the new ranking will continue inspiring the team to reach greater heights.”

Despite being the top dog in SEA in terms of world rankings, though, the Phl will not be competing in the SEA Games in Myanmar, the region’s premier competition for U-23 football, as it couldn’t get the blessing from the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC).

This feat, meanwhile, should provide a huge confidence boost for the Azkals as they gear up for the 2014 Asian Football Confederation Challenge Cup.

"We want to win the Challenge Cup and represent the country in the 2015 AFC Asian Cup," said Palami.

Azkals now SE Asia’s top team

Drawing strength from the 3-1 victory over Pakistan that sealed its triumph in the Philippine Peace Cup last Tuesday, the Philippines climbed to its highest ranking in history, vaulting four places up to No. 137 in the latest International Football Federation (Fifa) rankings.

And for the first time, the Azkals supplanted Thailand as the No. 1-ranked side in Southeast Asia after the Thais dropped to No. 143 in the world.

Myanmar is the third best team in Southeast Asia at 149, followed by Vietnam (151), Singapore (155), Malaysia (160), Indonesia (162), Laos (165), Timor Leste (193), Brunei (193) and Cambodia (198).

Ironically, the Philippines is not sending a football team to the Southeast Asian Games in Myanmar this December.

The Fifa ranking system not only considers recent results, but also gives weight to the performance of the national team since 2010. The Azkals picked up 213 ranking points over the past month.

“This is the result of the hard work and sacrifice of those involved with the national team, particularly the players, and the support of the Philippine Football Federation,” said Azkals manager Dan Palami.

“Getting the top ranking in Southeast Asia has been our goal since we started with the national team. I’m glad that our efforts have been rewarded,” added Palami, who started supporting the team in 2010.


“We hope that the new ranking will continue to inspire the team to reach greater heights,” said PFF president Mariano “Nonong” Araneta.

Though the Azkals, known for their resiliency, have played only seven matches this year, they endured a busy schedule in the past two years, allowing them to pick up significant ranking points.

Palami believes the rankings will give the Azkals a huge confidence boost as they prepare for the AFC Challenge Cup in the Maldives in May next year.

The winner of the Challenge Cup will qualify for the Asian Cup, which has been the target of the Azkals.

“We should not lose sight of the bigger picture, which is the Challenge Cup,” said Palami.

“We want to win that championship. To go there and to do that will take more than just a win in the Peace Cup as it will take a lot of effort from the stakeholders of the sport.”

source: inquirer.net

Azkals dedicate Peace Cup win to quake victims

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Azkals dedicated their stirring win in the Peace Cup

Football Invitationals to the victims of the destructive earthquake, which struck the Visayas and other parts of the country on Tuesday.

The Azkals defended their Peace Cup crown with a 3-1 victory over Pakistan on Tuesday night at the Panaad Stadium in Bacolod City.

It came after a 7.2-magnitude quake shook Visayas, especially the provinces of Cebu and Bohol, with the death toll reaching over 100.

“We dedicate this win to our kababayans that are affected by the earthquake. We hope this victory can lift their spirits,” said team manager Dan Palami.

Filipino-German Stephan Schrock, a Bundesliga veteran who was inspired by the hometown crowd, delivered the victory-clinching goal for the Filipinos in the 88th minute.

“Salamat po sa lahat ng suporta. Mahal namin kayong lahat. Pinagdadaga namin lahat ng earthquake victim. Sana maging matatag kayo,” Schrock tweeted (@s17Stephan).

Misagh Bahadoran and Juani Guirado also offered their support on Twitter.

“We offer this victory to those affected by the earthquake and hoping we bring a little smile on the faces of our fellowmen” said @misagh_9.

The Azkals, who have been in the capital province of Negros Occidental since last week for the three-nation tournament, also felt the effects of the earthquake.

“Earthquake to wake us up,” tweeted National team mainstay James Younghusband.

It wasn’t a new experience for most of the Azkals, though.

In 2011, the team was in the middle of its AFC Challenge Cup buildup in Gotemba when a massive magnitude-8.9 quake rocked most of Japan.

They were also in Myanmar for the Challenge Cup group stages when an earthquake, measuring 6.8 in the Richter scale, hit.


source: sports.inquirer.net

Azkals rally to retain Peace Cup boot crown

BACOLOD CITY—Inspired by the brilliance of German Bundesliga veteran Stephan Schrock, the Philippines claimed the Philippine Peace Cup with a come-from-behind 3-1 triumph over Pakistan amid a festive atmosphere at Panaad Stadium here.

The fleet-footed Schrock, who plays club football for Eintracht Frankfurt, set up the equalizer of Patrick Reichelt in the 33rd minute before capping his heroics with a well-taken goal two minutes from time that sent the crowd into delirium.

Known for delivering important goals for the country, midfielder Chris Greatwich scored the go-ahead goal for 2-1 in the 78th minute.

The Azkals dropped a 1-2 decision to Chinese-Taipei on opening-day last Friday and needed at least a 2-1 victory to keep the Peace Cup.

They did that and more with a strong performance that provided a glimpse of their potential when they vie for an Asian Cup berth in the AFC Challenge Cup in the Maldives in May.

“The team showed what they can achieve if they play cohesively,” said Azkals manager Dan Palami, who, along with Philippine Football Federation president Mariano Araneta, received the trophy from Bacolod City mayor Monico Puentevella. “We know there’s a long way to go for us but we’re happy with the win as it boosts our confidence.”

Etheridge was solid in between the posts, while Rob Gier and Juani Guirado were hardly troubled in the second half. Jerry Lucena put in a fine shift as defensive midfielder, while Misagh Bahadoran, getting a rare start, provided flashes of brilliance on the left flank.

Just like in past matches that mattered, the Azkals proved resilient even after going behind after 15 minutes when Hassan Bashir cut inside Jerry Barbaso and slotted the ball past a helpless Neil Etheridge.

Schrock’s quality, however, was there for everyone to see. He spearheaded the comeback, flicking the ball past a defender before going on a bristling run down the line. With time and space, Schrock found Reichelt at the middle for a first-time finish to a quick counter-attack.

source: Mark Giongco, INQUIRER.NET

Azkals to defend Peace Cup title at Panaad

Photo of Mayor Monico Puentevella courtesy of spin.ph

Bacolod City Mayor Monico Puentevella confirmed that the Philippine Azkals will be defending the Philippine Peace Cup against Pakistan and Chinese Taipei at the Panaad Stadium on October 11, 13 and 15, a press release from city hall said.

Puentevella said the Philippine Football Federation informed his office that the Azkals will go against Pakistan (ranked 170) and Chinese Taipei whom they defeated last year, 3-1, at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila. The win also marked Philippine Football's first international title in 99 years.

The Azkals are ranked number 141 by FIFA, or the Fédération Internationale de Football Association as the sport's governing body. Chinese Taipei, on the other hand is 5 ranks south of Pakistan at 175.

A member of FIFA's Marketing and Television Committee, Puentevella foresees a jam-packed Panaad crowd on the said dates as Bacolod and Negros are known for their ardor for the sport, the press release said.

“We know football and we have a deep passion for the game. Whether it's the Azkals or the Ceres football team playing, I know that Panaad will be full. We are just as synonymous with football as we are with MassKara,” Puentevella said.

He also reminded that Group F regional qualifier of the 3 rd PFF Smart National Club Championship will be played in Panaad starting tomorrow until Sunday with defending champion Ceres FC facing the teams from Iloilo, Capiz, Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental.*

source:http://www.visayandailystar.com