Beaten hosts aim last strike at Thailand

ID Nugroho, The Jakarta Post, Surabaya

Already beaten in the battle for the championship, Indonesia will try to regain its pride over crowned Thailand when the two teams meet on Sunday in the soccer final at the ASEAN University Games.

"We know Thailand is a strong team, but we will be striving hard to win the match," Indonesian coach Sutrisno said here on Saturday.

The Indonesian soccer team was forced into extra time before booking a 3-2 win over Malaysia in the semifinals on Friday, while Thailand eased through, with the 1-0 trouncing of Brunei Darussalam.

The soccer match will be the highlight of the closing ceremony on Sunday of the competition between college students from Southeast Asian nations.

After competing for a week, Thailand retained the championship trophy with a significant 52 golds until the penultimate day. Indonesia languished in second place with 30 golds.

Malaysia and the Philippines followed behind with 10 golds apiece, but the former had a better collection of silver, 19 against 8. Vietnam stood in fifth place with 9, and Singapore sixth, with just one gold.

Brunei was content with four bronzes, while Cambodia, Laos and Timor Leste failed to win a medal. Myanmar, the other member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), did not send any representatives.

In Saturday's program, Donny B. Utomo grabbed his second gold in the swimming pool, where Thailand retained its dominance with another four golds.

The Philippines put in a tough fight against the champions, ending the day with three golds.

Thailand's last gold was produced in the sepak takraw arena, where Indonesia had to settle with bronze behind Malaysia.

Home team coach Roy S. Herlambang said the outcome had been expected. "Thailand holds the upper hand over us. They are more experienced, and have been competing in more tournaments."

The medal tally at the ASEAN University Games in Surabaya on Saturday:

Country Gold Silver Bronze Total
Thailand 52 46 26 124
Indonesia 30 33 49 112
Malaysia 10 18 22 50
Philippines 10 9 11 30
Vietnam 9 4 7 20
Singapore 1 2 10 13
Brunei - - 4 4
Cambodia - - - -
Laos - - - -
Timor Leste - - - -