Undermanned Vietnam holds Indonesia 2-2

Undermanned Vietnam holds Indonesia 2-2

JAKARTA (JP): Vietnam, playing with 10 men for most of the
second half, held host Indonesia 2-2 in their group B match of
the 19th SEA Games soccer competition yesterday.

Van Sy Hung was the toast of Vietnam with two goals that kept
his team's slender chances of progressing beyond the round-robin
matches alive.

Vietnam was reduced to 10 men in the 55th minute yesterday
when defender Do Van Khai received his marching orders from
Singaporean referee Santan Nagalingam for felling Widodo Cahyono
Putro.

The determined Indonesians had taken the initiative from the
outset.

Bima Sakti, one of Indonesia's young squad who played in the
Italian junior league a few years ago, gave Indonesia a 1-0 lead
from a free kick in the 17th minute, his first goal in the
tournament.

In the 28th minute, striker Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto almost
added to the score, but his header went high and wide.

The two teams maintained their pace in the second half, but it
was Vietnam which found the net first.

Agile striker Hung broke away from the Indonesian defenders to
finish a corner with a bicycle kick that sent Indonesian keeper
Kurnia Sandy the wrong way in the 58th minute.

Vietnam's jubilation was short-lived as Kurniawan finally
found the target five minutes later. The Central Javanese forward
headed home a cross fed by fellow striker Widodo.

Indonesia controlled the rest of the match, but its shaky
defense cost it its second win. Hung, once again, toyed with
Indonesia's trio of defenders before beating Kurnia with a flat
drive in the 87th minute to silence the 50,000 crowd.

In the earlier group match, a hat trick by Mohammad Azmi
helped Malaysia maintain its 100 percent record with a 4-0 rout
of the Philippines. Zami Muhammad Noer scored the other.

In group A, Thailand's title defense bid received a major
boost with a 6-0 win over lowly Brunei. Tawan Sripan and Kiatisuk
Senamuang scored two goals each, while Chaichan Khewsen and
substitute Worawoot Srimaka each hit one.

The win puts the Thais on top of the group with six points,
ahead of Cambodia on three points but with one game in hand.
Cambodia, which routed Brunei 4-0 on Sunday, plays Singapore
tomorrow.

Singapore was left trailing after its 2-2 draw with Myanmar
yesterday. Myo Hlaing Win scored two goals for Myanmar, while
Singapore equalized through Selvaraj Vengsadalam and Zulkarnaen
Zainal. (10)

Results

Group A:
Thailand 6 Brunei 0 (ht. 2-0)
Singapore 2 Myanmar 2 (ht. 1-0)

Standings

P W D L Gf Ga Pts
Thailand 2 2 0 0 8 1 6
Cambodia 1 1 0 0 4 0 3
Singapore 1 0 1 0 2 2 1
Myanmar 2 0 1 1 3 4 1
Brunei 2 0 0 2 0 9 0

Group B:
Malaysia 4 Philippines 0 (ht. 2-0)
Indonesia 2 Vietnam 2 (ht. 1-0)

Standings

P W D L Gf Ga Pts
Malaysia 2 2 0 0 5 0 6
Indonesia 2 1 1 0 7 4 4
Vietnam 2 0 1 1 2 3 1
Laos 1 0 0 1 2 5 0
Philippines 1 0 0 1 0 4 0