Resurgent Pinay booters eye 2nd win
By Ian Brion

STANDINGS: Myanmar 2-0, Thailand 2-1, Vietnam 1-1 Philippines 1-1, Indonesia 0-3.

Games Today Nov 28: Marikina pitch
4pm Myanmar vs Thailand
6:30pm Philippines vs Vietnam

Fresh from winning its first match in six years, the Philippine women’s football team tries to continue its rise from the grave when it clashes with the Vietnam as action resumes in the 23rd SEA Games at the Marikina pitch.

Game time is set at 6:30 p.m. following an equally all important match between front-running Myanmar and Thailand at 4 p.m.

Playing impressive and aggressive football the whole match, the Filipinas out-hustled, out-kicked, and out-fought the Indonesians to notch their first win in the tournament – and since the 1999 Brunei Games – to the delight of more than 9,000 cheering fans.

“This is the teamthat I’m telling you. This is the team I said can win all the way,” said RP team co-manager Ernest Nierras moments after his wards defeated the Indons.

“But we’re not yet done,” quipped Cathy Rivilla, the team’s other manager. “If we gave 100 percent today, come Monday we’ll play 150 percent.”

Nierras and Rivilla are speaking for the team in lieu of coach Marlon Maro, who declined to talk to media.

After absorbing a shocking 1-0 loss to Myanmar on its initial match, Vietnam bounced back with a 1-0 victory over Thailand the other day.

With the race for the medals slot now a four-cornered fight after Indonesia bowed out with 0-3 mark, the Philippines must win at least one of its two remaining assignments to contend for at least the bronze medal.

The Filipina booters’ last match would be against Myanmar, the 2003 Games silver medal winner.

“We’ll just take it one game at a time. The win against Indonesia boosted our confidence to a very high level, and we hope that we can carry it to tomorrow’s match,” Rivilla said yesterday.

“We’ll just continue what we did yesterday.”

The winner of the Myanmar-Thailand duel will take the first finals slot.

After upsetting Vietnam, Myanmar trounced the hapless Indons last Thursday to remain unscathed, while Thailand succumbed to the Vietnamese after back-to-back triumph against Indonesia and the Philippines.

SEA GAMES PHILIPPINES [http://www.2005seagames.com.ph/]