PSSI team routed 4-1 by Japanese amateurs

The Indonesian soccer team, which is preparing to vie for a berth in the 2004 Asian Cup, suffered a humiliating 4-1 defeat at the hands of a team of Japanese amateurs in a friendly in Jakarta on Friday.

Indonesia found itself four goals down at the Bung Karno Stadium, before pulling a goal back in the closing minutes of the game, which was aired live on ANTV.

The defeat is a blow to Indonesia's build-up to the Asian Cup qualifying matches, in which Indonesian is drawn against Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Bhutan.

It was also a dubious reward for Indonesia's Bulgarian coach Ivan Kolev, who was recently promised a one-year contract extension by soccer's national governing body, PSSI.

The Japanese team, which was defeated by the Jakarta-based Persija club 1-0 on Wednesday, appeared completely untroubled by the Indonesians, with Furuhasi Tatsuya leading the way with strikes in the 22nd and 41st minutes.

Ito Tomohiro and Hasegawa Mitasaru added goals in the 33rd and 88th minutes, respectively. Indonesia's lone goal came from Budi Harsono. --JP