Laos, RP advance in Suzuki Cup's main draw

Host Laos and the Philippines earned slots in the main draw of the Suzuki Cup ASEAN Football Championship after claiming the top two spots in the qualifying event held at the National Stadium in Laotian capital of Vientiane Tuesday night. The finals of the biennial meet will be held from December 2 to 29, co-hosted by Indonesia and Vietnam. Laos completed a 6-1 rout of Timor Leste to join Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia in Group A while the Philippines held Cambodia to a scoreless draw to earn a spot in Group together with Vietnam, Singapore and Myanmar. The Filipino booters only needed a draw to enter the finals. They accomplished the feat with defense as they hung tough to secure the tie. The Philippines finished the qualifying tournament with five points with a rout of Timor Leste, 5-0, and a 2-2 draw against Laos. "It’s very rewarding that the program we started has achieved its target," said national team manager Dan Palami. “We know it will be difficult, but the players worked very hard to get to this level." “We owe a lot to coach Des and of course the management which has been very supportive to our needs, said forward Ian Arenta. The Philippines will face Singapore in its opening match on December 2 at the My Dinh Stadium in Hanoi, Vietnam. "We need to prepare better to stand a chance," said RP co-skipper Chieffy Caligdong. Aly Borromeo is the other team captain while the Philippines will be reinforced by Filipino-German Stephan Schrock, who plays in Division II of Bundesliga in Germany. – KY, JVP, GMANews.TV