Thailand scalps favorite Japan 2-0 in U-19 opener<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Thailand lived up to its billing as a promising
\nAsian soccer powerhouse as it pounded favorite Japan 2-0 in their
\nAsian youth under-19 soccer championship opener yesterday.<\/p>\n
Efficient play paid dividends for the Thai youngsters, while
\nthe Japanese side, who were stretched throughout the 90 minutes
\nof the match, found no room to score.<\/p>\n
Thailand's captain Tawan Sripan struck the first goal in a
\nsolo run, just 12 minutes after the opening whistle. An explosive
\nTawan outpaced Japanese defenders led by Keusaku Omori before
\nfiring his devastating shot which had goalie Seiji Honda leaping
\nin vain.<\/p>\n
Hidetoshi Nakata led Japan's up front charge for an equalizer.
\nIt might have been just a matter of luck that the Japanese
\nteenagers missed every attempt they made, but the Thai defense
\nclearly played a part.<\/p>\n
A spare crowd of about 1,000 at Senayan stadium, in contrast
\nto the 50,000 people watching Sunday's matches, saw Thailand
\ngoalie Wacharapong Somcit demonstrate numerous brilliant dives to
\navoid the tide of the Japanese assaults. Wacharapong's
\ncommendable showing earned him the man of the match tag.<\/p>\n
Despite the swift rebuttals, high spirited Japan continued to
\ncome charging all the way. Winger Kiatisuk Senamuang confirmed
\nThailand's smart play when he volleyed the ball past Honda three
\nminutes to the final whistle.<\/p>\n
Boredom<\/p>\n
A 1-1 draw and boredom were the outcomes of the Bahrain-Kuwait
\nmatch yesterday, which opened the second day of play at the 29th
\nAsian youth, under-19 soccer championship at Senayan stadium.<\/p>\n
After a goal struck by Bahraini striker Yusuf A'amer in the
\n4th minute, the two Gulf states were involved in a seesaw,
\nlackluster, battle. Finally, Kuwaiti Ahmad Mairza added zest by
\nstealthily evening up the score in the 87th minute -- throwing
\nhis whole team into a state of rapture equal to that of any World
\nCup victors.<\/p>\n
Both teams resorted heavily to kicking the ball off the field
\nto prevent goal attempts and blew many golden opportunities, even
\nthough Kuwait for the most part managed to control the play.<\/p>\n
\"For us, it was a difficult game. Our team was out of form.
\nThey did not follow my instructions,\" Iouri Morozov, Kuwait's
\nRussian-born coach, told reporters at a press conference held
\nafter the match. They were only beginning to familiarize
\nthemselves with the field's condition here, Morozov added.<\/p>\n
On the other hand, Bahraini coach, Fuad Hasan Bushaqer,
\nremarked that \"it's a good game that everybody wanted to win.\"<\/p>\n
When asked why his team made so many unnecessary mistakes
\nafter leading the match 1-0, the forgiving Fuad said \"everybody
\nmakes mistakes\".<\/p>\n
During the unemotional, dangling-in-the-balance match, each
\nteam had one of its players replaced and referee Yu Jing Yin of
\nChina flashed two yellow cards -- one to Saleh Alazmi and another
\none to Haitham Abahrouh, both of whom are from Bahrain. (arf\/amd)<\/p>\n
Today's fixture:
\n5.30 p.m.: Qatar vs Kazakhstan
\n7.30 p.m.: Iraq vs Syria<\/p>",
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