Azkals make history, beat Singapore 2-0

Carlos Santamaria

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The Philippine Azkals made history after beating Singapore for the first time in a FIFA-sanctioned international friendly game in the Lion City

AZKALS CAPTAIN Chieffy Caligdong, one of the scorers against Singapore. File photo from Azkals official website

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Azkals made history by beating Singapore for the first time and on their home turf 2-0 on Friday, September 7.

In the second of a series of three FIFA-sanctioned international friendly games, the Azkals recovered from an initial shock when Singapore almost scored in the beginning at the Jurong West Stadium, packed full of Filipino fans cheering on their players.

Neil Etheridge was at the top of his game during the whole match and denied the Singaporean striker.

Electrifying start

In a blitzing start, captain Chieffy Caligdong received a ball on the counterattack in the 8th minute and after skirting past a defender scored with his bad right foot.

Although initially everyone thought his shot had been deflected by a defender, the replay showed that it was in fact a patch of grass that confused the keeper.

Singapore failed to recover from then and insisted on playing a stylish passing game that was interesting to watch but got them nowhere near Etheridge.

On the other side of the pitch, Phil Younghusband struggled to make an impact as sole striker but still managed to secure a few chances that he missed by just a few inches.

The trend continued into the second half.

Phil scores

In the 49th minute, Phil made it 2-0 after he controlled, stopped, dribbled and slotted the ball into the back of the net after a nice deep pass from Stephan Schrock.

The Azkals kept going and could have scored even more goals, but the Singaporean goalie denied them every time, while Etheridge kept the danger at bay at the other box.

Singapore tried their best but were unable to create anywhere near the opportunities the Azkals had for the Philippines to route the Lion City.

Next rival: Laos

After tonight’s win, the Philippine National Football Team will be full of confidence when the play Laos on Monday in the last stage of their three-game Asian tour.

Previously, the Azkals drew 0-0 with Cambodia.

All these friendlies are FIFA-sanctioned and are in preparation for the upcoming AFF Suzuki Cup 2012.

Immediately before the big tournament, the Azkals will play in the Philippine Football Peace Cup (formely Long Teng Cup) against Chinese Taipei, Guam and Macau at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila. – Rappler.com

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