SINGAPORE (29 July 2011) – Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand made the third round of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers.
Singapore held Malaysia to a 1-1 draw at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil and where following their 5-3 win at home ensured the Lion’s qualification on an aggregate of 6-4.
The scorer for the Malaysians was striker Safee Sali in the 57th minute before the visitors replied through Shi Jiayi in the 72nd minute.
“The game was a good one and that too in front of a big crowd. We got the result we wanted. I have been teaching my players that this is the kind of games you live to play for as a player in front of a full capacity stadium,” said Singapore chief coach Radojko Avrammovic.
At the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Indonesia thrilled the sell-out crowd to beat Turkmenistan 4-3 on the night and 5-4 on aggregate.
Veteran striker Cristian Gonzales emerged as the Indonesian hero, netting a brace inside 18 minutes to put the home side in the driver’s seat, before Mohammad Nasuha made it 3-0 three minutes from the break.
The Persija Jakarta defender went from hero to villain midway through the second half when he put through his own net, but Muhammad Ridwan restored Indonesia’s three-goal cushion on 76 minutes.
The visitors threw everything forward in the closing stages, and two late goals from Berdy Shamuradov and Gahrymanberdy Chonkaev provided them with a lifeline.
However, the Indonesians kept their cool in the dying seconds to ensure there was to be no last-gasp drama.
Playing away at the Faysal Al-Husseini Stadium proved to be no hindrance to Thailand when they held Palestine to a 2-2 draw.
Murad Ellyan was the scorer for Palestine with goals in the six minute and 90th minute but Thai striker Datsakorn Thonglao emerged as the toast for the Thais when he found the equaliser on both occasion with strikes in the 33rd minute and 95th minute.
Thailand advanced 3-2 on aggeegate based on their 1-0 win at home.
In the other matches, Vietnam bounced back from their 3-0 first leg defeat away to Qatar with a 2-1 win with goals from Trong Hoang Nguyen and Quang Hai Nguyen.
But the Qataris still emerged as 4-2 aggregate victors.
In the meantime Laos, fell to a 6-1 loss to China and where following the result from the leg (a 7-2 defeat) bowed out on 13-3 aggregate.
Myanmar also failed to advance following their 4-0 aggregate loss to Oman while Philippines’ could not prevent Kuwait from advancing into the next round following their 2-1 loss at home. Kuwait had also carved a 3-0 victory from the first leg.
