Myanmar still maintains Group A lead in Tiger Cup
Myanmar still maintains Group A lead in Tiger Cup
Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Myanmar crushed Cambodia 5-0 here on Thursday to continue its
charge in Group A of the Tiger Cup, while Vietnam strengthened
its status as tournament favorite with a 4-1 victory over lowly
Philippines.
It was the second consecutive win for David Booth's Myanmar
side, following its 6-1 rout of the Philippines on Tuesday.
Lwin Oo had a double for Myanmar while Zaw Zaw, Zaw Htaik and
Tint Naing Tun Thein each scored a goal to put their side at the
top of the group with seven points and a formidable goal
advantage.
Vietnam and Indonesia, each with a game in hand, are in second
and third place with six and four points respectively. Cambodia
and the Philippines have yet to earn a point in the tournament.
With the home squad Indonesia not playing on Thursday, the
100,000 capacity Bung Karno Stadium was nearly deserted, with a
smattering of spectators seated near the VIP section.
Myanmar and Cambodia both got off to a slow start, with the
team teams ending the half in a scoreless draw. Myanmar had the
best of the action but failed to capitalize on its opportunities.
The goal scoring began five minutes into the second half when
Zaw Zaw, who came off the bench for Yan Paing, put Myanmar in
front with his left-footed drive. The ball took a deflection off
a Cambodian defender before finding the back of the net.
Lwin Oo lengthened the lead with his header and Zaw Htaik, who
had come close to scoring on numerous occasions, finally got on
the scoresheet with a volley at the near post.
Lwin Oo scored his second goal on the day 10 minutes from the
end of time, turning defenders inside out before sending a left-
footed drive into the net. And five minutes later, Tun Thein
joined the goal barrage with a powerful drive from just outside
the box.
"In the first half, we were waiting for a first goal to go in
front. Unfortunately, we were less than organized.
"We needed a little bit of quality in final touches and a
quality finish into the goal.
"In the second half we started putting the ball into the box.
We were quite relieved to get that first one after it took so
long," Booth said.
With the win, Myanmar improved its chance of qualifying for
the semifinals. But it will face a difficult task when it comes
up against Vietnam at Lebak Bulus Stadium in South Jakarta next
Monday.
Myanmar will not play on Saturday, a day that will see
Cambodia meet the Philippines and Indonesia play Vietnam in a
crucial match.
"Today's game gave us more of a chance to get into the
semifinals. We have a rest and then we play Vietnam in four days.
So we have time to organize and assess our chances against
Vietnam to go into the last four.
"Vietnam is probably the strongest team at the moment. But
we'd like to enjoy now and relax for a few days before taking
them on," Booth said.
Cambodian coach Joachim Fickert, who complained about the
physical lapses of his players during the Myanmar game, announced
after the match that he was leaving the team after the
tournament.
"I have known some of you for years. I'd like to thank you,
because my time in Cambodia is over after the Tiger Cup and after
seven years with the team," the German said.