Petrokimia wins soccer club title as Frenchman scores golden goal
Petrokimia wins soccer club title as Frenchman scores golden goal
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Petrokimia Putra of Gresik in East Java capitalized on the rain
to beat a feisty Persita Tangerang team with a golden goal from
substitute Yao Eloi of France to win the Indonesian soccer league
final 2-1 for the first time on Sunday.
Both teams played the final under a heavy downpour for most of
the second half. The referee stopped the match 10 minutes before
the final whistle due to the huge puddles on the field in Bung
Karno Stadium, turning one of the world's venues largest stadiums
into a giant pond.
Play resumed after 15 minutes to allow the grounds crew to
drain the water-logged field.
Petrokimia was left trailing for almost all of regular time
after Persita's striker Ilham Jayakusuma struck a goal as the
match was just one minute old. The goal earned Ilham the Golden
Boot award, having scored 26 goals throughout the league.
Patience and resilience paid off for the East Javanese side,
which saw a hatful of opportunities slip through their toes, but
in the 73rd minute, foreign signing Samuel Chelbi latched on to a
free-kick to beat a stranded Persita goalkeeper Achmad Kurniawan.
Eloi scored the winner after a scrum inside Persita's penalty
box just three minutes after Moldovan coach Sergei Dubrovin
brought him in during the extra time. Sasi Kirono volleyed a long
feed to Eloi, who, despite close marking from two Persita
defenders, tapped it toward the goal with his right foot.
Persita goalkeeper Mukti Ali Raja tried to secure the ball,
but it bounced off his hands, and Eloi came just in time to slam
home the rebound.
"It's one of my career best goals," Eloi, who is in his first
year with the club which is financed by the country's largest
cement producer PT Semen Gresik, told Antara.
The victory awarded Petrokimia the winner's Rp 100 million
check and a place in the Asian Champions League. Persita, aiming
to cap its six-year appearance in the premier league with a
championship title, had to be content with the Rp 75 million
prize money and a place in the Asia Cup Winners Cup.
It was also sweet revenge for Petrokimia, which lost 1-0 to
Persita in the final eight round-robin match almost two months
ago.
Petrokimia team manager Imam Supardi said each of his players
had secured Rp 10 million for reaching the final. The cash bonus,
he said, could increase after the victory.
While Persita players consoled each other, Petrokimia
celebrated with their supporters who invaded the pitch. One of
the winning team's fans held aloft a giant replica of the FIFA
World Cup trophy as tears of joy rolled down cheeks.
Persita official Tasdik Diana said he accepted the defeat, but
he questioned how the water could inundate such a huge stadium as
the Senayan sports complex.
He was disappointed with the sports complex management for
failing to anticipate the heavy downpour.
"There is something wrong with the drainage system at the
stadium. The venue hosted a get together to watch the World Cup
final last week, in which thousands of people assembled on the
field," Tasdik said.