Indonesia routs Myanmar to reach Tiger Cup semis
Indonesia routs Myanmar to reach Tiger Cup semis
HO CHI MINH CITY (AP): Miro Baldo Bento scored twice as Indonesia rebounded from an early deficit to down the Philippines 6-2 last night and clinch a semifinal berth in the Tiger Cup soccer competition.
Pre-tournament favorite Thailand broke away from a halftime tie to defeat the Philippines 3-1 and stay in control for the other semifinal spot from Group A of the eight-nation event.
Myo Hliang Win knocked in a header in the first minute for Myanmar, which had looked impressive in an opening tie against Thailand.
But Myanmar faded as Indonesia picked up momentum, and by the time Hliang Win got his second goal on a penalty kick in the 75th minute, Indonesia had run off six consecutive scores.
Aji Santoso equalized at 14 minutes on a penalty kick, and Widodo Putro put Indonesia ahead for good 2-1 at 29 minutes. Bento's third goal, in the 39th minute, made it 3-1 at halftime.
Bima Sakti scored on a free kick from 17 meters to increase the margin to 4-1, and Bento followed with a penalty kick at 63 minutes. Kurniawan Yulianto finished Indonesia's scoring in the 70th minute.
Thailand dominated the Philippines in the night's rain-soaked opening match but still had trouble finding the net. Worawut Srimaka but the Thais ahead 1-0 at 21 minutes, but Loreto Kalaland equalized in the 34th minute.
Krisada Piandit put Thailand ahead for good in the 58th minute, and Kiarung Threejag scored a clincher in the 87th minute.
The 22,000-seat stadium was fill to a little over half- capacity.
Myanmar still has a chance to advance to the semis but would need a decisive victory over the Philippines and a Thailand loss to Indonesia in Monday's final Group B matches.
Group A resumes today in Hanoi when Vietnam plays Malaysia and Singapore takes on Laos. Vietnam and Singapore head the group standings, each with a victory and a tie, and only need ties to advance.
The championship match will be held Sept. 5. First prize is worth 80,000.
Premier League
In London, Aston Villa took lone possession of first place yesterday in England's Premier League with a 1-0 victory at Sheffield Wednesday on a goal in the 37th by Julian Joachim.
Nottingham Forest, on the third weekend of the season, defeated Southampton 2-1 to move into second place with six points, one behind the leader. For Southampton, it was a third loss in three games, leaving the side last in the 20-team league.
Newly promoted Charlton, the surprise team of the early season, held defending league and F.A. Cup champion Arsenal to a 0-0 draw at the Gunners' north London stadium.
Arsenal had to settle for the draw after French international Emmanuel Petit was sent off in the 58th minute after picking up his second yellow card.
Despite the draw, Charlton - the leader after two weeks - stayed in third place tied with four other clubs with five points: Wimbledon, Arsenal, Leeds and West Ham.
Everton remained without a goal in three games, losing 1-0 to Tottenham, another troubled side that had dropped its first two games with coach Christian Gross's job clearly on the line.
In other games yesterday in the Premier League: Blackburn 1, Leicester 0; Coventry 0, West Ham 0; Middlesbrough 1, Derby 1; Wimbledon 1, Leeds 1.