Beaten hosts aim last strike at Thailand
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 - - - -