NAYPYITAW (23 Aug 2013) – Indonesia took the lead in Group B of the AFF AYA Bank Under-16 Championship when they edged the Philippines 2-0 in the second match of the day at the Wunna Theikdi Stadium.
But the score line could have been much bigger had it not been for the excellent work of Philippines keeper Michael Asong, who made several crucial saves in either half to prevent an Indonesian onslaught.
“Yes, the keeper made the difference but we are just happy with the full points,” said Mundari Karya, the coach of Indonesia. “It was important that we win today to make sure of our passage to the next round.”
Whether it was over-confidence or otherwise, Indonesia were a little slow off the mark on the day where their failure to stamp their dominance saw the Philippines taking more control.
It was not until the 33rd minute of play, that Gatot Wahyudi finally broke the deadlock when he made up for his earlier miss by capitalising on a defensive mistake.
Indonesia piled on the pressure well into the second half before Riyanto made sure of the points in the 77th minute with a well-taken shot from the edge of the Philippines box.
Group B Current Standings
