VIETNAM EDGE BRUNEI; SLIM WIN FOR THAILAND

Vietnam, who are being led by former Thai national head coach Pattaya Piemkum, were in knots for much of the time after conceding the early goal in the third minute off Mohd Shahril Ismail as Brunei took a 1-0 lead at the break.

A minute into the second half, Vietnam fell further behind when
Faizul Zainy slammed home although they did pull a goal back from Truong Quoc Tuan a minute later.

Brunei upped the tempo somewhat for a two-goal advantage when Faizul was again on target in the 24th minute until a flurry of goals saw Vietnam going in front for the first time on a 5-3 advantage.

Vietnam scored off Huynh Ba Tuan (25th and 27th minute), Pham Minh Giang (31st) and then an own goal from Noor Karim (35th) for them to in the driver’s seat.

Brunei scored their final goal of the evening off Jasriman Johari two minutes to the end for the final scoreline.

“I was not worried when Brunei scored because I have the confidence of the players that they can come back into the game,” added Pattaya.

Thailand on the other hand suffered more drama when Philippines delivered a shocker with the early goal from Misagh Bahardoran in the third minute.

The defending champions, represented by their Under-21 squad, then fought back off Jirawat Sornwichian (4th minute), Thanakorn Penpakul (5th), Supahut Thueanklang (15th) and Jadet Punpoem (17th) for them to be 4-1 in front going into the second half.

But Philippines pulled it together after the breather when a brace from Ariel Zerrudo (24th and 28th minute) and Suphahut (25th minute) saw them leveling up to 4-4.

Obviously shaken, the young Thai side then muster a late charge for Suphahut to be again on target five minutes to the end for the win.

“It was pulsating all the way to the finish line. But it was a good game for the young players and they can only improve from this first international match,” added Kraiserm Tohtubtiang, the team manager of Thailand.

AFF FUTSAL LEAGUE 2008 RESULTS and FIXTURES

27 AUGUST
MALAYSIA 4 LAOS 2
INDONESIA 4 MYANMAR 2
VIETNAM 5 BRUNEI 4
THAILAND 5 PHILIPPINES 4

28 AUGUST
Laos vs Vietnam
Philippines vs Indonesia
Brunei vs Malaysia
Myanmar vs Thailand

29 AUGUST
Vietnam vs Malaysia
Myanmar vs Philippines
Thailand vs Indonesia
Brunei vs Laos