Malaysia, Vietnam dance in goal feast in soccer tourney
Malaysia, Vietnam dance in goal feast in soccer tourney
BANGKOK, Thailand (Agencies): Rusdi Suparman scored in the
28th and the 53rd minutes to help Malaysia trounce lowly Laos 5-0
in its preliminary Group B Tiger Cup match Tuesday in the
southern town of Songkhla.
In the second match, Vietnam trounced lowly Cambodia 6-0 for
its first win in the Tiger Cup competition at the Tinsulanon
Stadium.
Rusdi scored the first goal for Malaysia, latching onto a
throw-in from Bobby Pian to set the stage for Laos' demolition.
A minute later, Laos goalkeeper Xeunvillay Soulivanh conceded
a penalty with a foul on the Malaysian skipper Ahmad Sharul
Azhar. Azman Adnan made no mistake in scoring from the spot in
the 30th minute.
It was 3-0 in the 43rd minute with Azman's long ball finding
substitute Hairuddin Omar in the box. Hairuddin, the Trengganu
striker, brought the ball down on his chest, swerved past the
goalkeeper and netted the ball.
Goal number four for Malaysia came in the 53rd minute with
Rusdi making the most of a through ball from Mohammad Anuar Jusoh
to hit a rising shot from 15 meters out, which never gave the
Laotian goalkeeper any chance.
The last goal was scored by Ahmad Sharul in the 90th minute
with a perfect shot after an equally perfect shot from Azman.
"We persevered and it has paid off. The most important thing
here was to get a win today," Malaysia coach Abdul Rahman Ibrahim
said.
The victory kept Malaysia's hopes alive for a semifinal berth
after its scoreless draw in the opening match against Vietnam on
Sunday.
The Malaysians have two tough matches to face - against
Cambodia and defending champion Singapore - before the last four
stage.
It was a dominant display by the Vietnamese team, runner-up in
the same event two years ago and a favorite to qualify for Group
B in the semifinals.
Vietnam, held to a scoreless draw against Malaysia in its
opening match, went on the offensive from the start with central
striker and captain Le Huynh Duc opening the accounts in the 16th
minute.
Midfielder Nguyen Hong Son sent in a superb cross from the
right and Le, a cult figure back home, headed in to put his team
in the lead.
Vietnam continued its assault but failed to find the back of
the Cambodian net while Cambodia did manage to trouble the
Vietnamese defense with some dangerous moments.
But Vietnam goalkeeper Mai Tien Dung was never really tested.
Cambodia, which lost by a mere 1-0 margin to Singapore in its
opening match, defended well to hold the scoreline to 1-0 in the
first half.
Vietnamese dominance continued in the second half and it was
soon rewarded with a second goal in the 54th minute through
Nguyen Van Sy. He sent a curling shot from a corner that beat the
defenders and goalkeeper Soun Dara, to sail into goal.
It was Vietnam all the way and in the 56th minute it was 3-0
up when midfielder Nguyen Hong Son scored from a pass by Le on
the right flank.
The hapless Cambodian defense broke down as the Vietnamese
strikers mounted continuous raids and scored again in the 72nd
minute through Vu Cong Tuyen.
Nguyen Van Sy passed to Vu for goal number four.
Cambodia attempted a counter attack but its strikers were off
target and never looked like scoring.
Vietnam increased its scoreline with two more goals by Le in
the 78th minute and finally Vu in the 85th minute.
The other teams in the nine-nation tournament are Thailand,
Indonesia, Philippines and Myanmar. The final will be held in
Bangkok on Nov. 18.