Home team sweept away from U-19 soccer semis<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Evening drizzle carried Indonesia's boys away
\nfrom the 29th Asian Youth Under-19 soccer championship yesterday
\nas they ended their last Group A match against Iraq with an upset
\ngoalless draw after a hard-fought, nerve-wracking battle.<\/p>\n
Playing in front of a 30,000-strong home crowd, the Indonesian
\nboys, who desperately needed a win to march into the last four
\nrounds, displayed tireless attacking soccer against Iraq's safe
\nplay. A lack of coolness, however, prevented Indonesia's never-
\nsay-die squad from scoring a single goal.<\/p>\n
The hosts took most of the initiative, with Kurniawan Dwi
\nJulianto and Indrianto setting up at least three golden goal-
\nscoring chances for Indonesia in the first half and another three
\nin the second.<\/p>\n
Target-man Kurniawan yielded a thriller a few seconds from the
\nbreak with a brilliant solo run to finish Ismayana's long pass.
\nWith only goalie Khalid Risan left on Iraq's defensive ground,
\nKurniawan squandered the chance as his cross floated by 10
\ncentimeters from the left bar.<\/p>\n
The 18-year-old striker missed another opportunity seven
\nminutes after the interval when he hit another off-target cross,
\nwith Risan stranded in a daze. Too many missed chances drew tears
\nfrom the eyes of a dejected Kurniawan as he left the pitch.<\/p>\n
The young Iraqi booters, the object of jeers throughout the 90
\nminutes of play, got the most dazzling chance five minutes before
\nthe final whistle, when Shnaiyn struck a well-aimed, devastating
\nshot toward the goal. Substitute goalkeeper Ari Supriarso became
\nthe hero of the game for his fist which sent the ball fly over
\nthe bar.<\/p>\n
The Shnayn-led team, finishing second in the group, will join
\nunbeaten Syria in Friday's cross-over semifinals. South Korea
\nwill meet Japan today. They only need a draw to qualify for the
\nsemifinals.<\/p>\n
Trouncing<\/p>\n
Favorite Syria celebrated another big win in the previous
\nGroup A match with a 6-1 trouncing of helpless Kazakhstan, with
\nthe Middle Eastern side scoring all their goals in the first
\nhalf.<\/p>\n
The skillful Syrians, who had secured a semifinal berth before
\nyesterday's match, set out on the goal spree only five minutes
\nafter referee Daham Ali Kaidat blew the opening whistle with a
\n20-meter cannon ball from Ahmad Kurdachli. The prolific forward
\ntallied his second after finishing a cross from Marwan Mouna with
\nan acrobatic somersault three minutes later.<\/p>\n
Trailing 0-2, Kazakhstan boys, losers in their two previous
\nmatches, gave a horrifying answer. They had Syrian goalie Anwar
\nSeicho laboring with two saving dives in the 12th minute. Seicho
\nsurvived another terror four minutes later when he slid to stop
\nunmarked Saken Kenetaev from finding the net.<\/p>\n
But it was Seicho's last dangerous moment. The Syrians
\noverpowered hapless Kazakhstan with four more goals within 25
\nminutes.<\/p>\n
Standings:<\/p>\n
Group A
\n 1. Syria 4 3 1 0 13- 3 10
\n 2. Iraq 4 2 1 1 7- 4 7
\n 3. Indonesia 4 2 1 1 4- 5 5
\n 4. Qatar 4 1 2 1 5- 7 5
\n 5. Kazakhstan 4 0 0 4 5-15 0<\/p>\n
Group B
\n 1. Japan 3 2 0 1 4-2 6
\n 2. S. Korea 3 1 2 0 7-6 5
\n 3. Thailand 3 1 1 1 4-4 4
\n 4. Bahrain 4 0 3 1 4-6 3
\n 5. Kuwait 3 0 2 1 3-5 2<\/p>\n
Today's fixtures
\n Thailand vs Kuwait, 5.30 p.m.
\n Japan vs S. Korea, 7.30 p.m.<\/p>",
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