UP, DLSU, UST kick off UAAP Football 2nd round with big wins

This appears in the Thursday February 3, 2011 edition of the Business Mirror.

Going thataway! UP midfielder Ayi Aryee sends the through ball for another attack.

UP, DLSU, UST kick off UAAP Football 2^nd round with big wins

by rick olivares with pics by brosi gonzales

The University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons got back on the winning track with a 2-nil win over Ateneo de Manila yesterday at the start of second round action of the UAAP Season 73 Men’s Football Tournament.

The Fighting Maroons’ rookie sensation Jinggoy Valmayor eluded one defender just outside the Ateneo box and as he turned, he unleashed a wicked shot to beat keeper Joel Faustino for the match’s first score in the 55^th minute. It was Valmayor’s fifth goal in six matches.

In the 90^th minute, UP tallied its second goal when Jed Rances’ thunderous volley from 25 yards out found the back of the net. The irony of the goal was not lost on UP head coach Anto Gonzales whose squad fell prey to a La Salle score with 30 seconds left in injury time for a 1-1 draw.

UP’s victory over its Katipunan neighbor gave them 16 points in six games.

In the main matches of the day, De La Salle stayed right on UP’s heels with a 4-1 demolition over slumping defending champion FEU. Green Booter Arturo Enriquez scored the tournament’s first hat trick this season that gave the Hans Smit mentored eleven 12 points in six games.

Enriquez struck in the 20^th minute with a header off a well-placed corner kick by teammate Nazer Talento. He struck again in the 52^nd minute when a through ball beat FEU’s defenders. Enriquez slotted in past a diving Tamaraws keeper Leoben Wayco for the second score. He once more scored in the 59^th minute when he headed in wing play. In the 68^th minute, Talento tallied in La Salle’s fourth goal when he collared a rebound and chipped it over Wayco.

FEU pulled back one goal when Jhonie Lopez struck in the 89^th minute against reserve DLSU keeper Joshua Cruz. “As I said at the start of the season, I am excited about this team,” gushed Smit. “They have overdone myself. Of all my strikers, it is only Enriquez who has not scored. I am glad that he decided to join the party.”

The Green Archers have shown a lot of scoring depth this tournament as eight players have scored: Al Bustamante, Derrico Diamante, Junpei Ogawa, Federico Rabaya, Nikko Villa, Mateo Yuhico, Enriquez, and Talento for a league leading 13 goals. UST has 11 total goals to it’s tally.

"I was hoping for one chance to be able to contribute," said Enriquez after the game. "Positive thinking lang. Now I can breathe a little easier. But hopefully, it's just the start because we have a chance to play for a championship."

The Tamaraws have suffered greatly from the graduation of the core of their champion squad of 2008 and 2010 in Jason Cordova, Glester Sobremisana, Raymond Buensuceso, Jake Hugo, and Bricks Caballero among many others. But the young squad of coach Adolfo Alicante gamely took the fight to La Salle and clearly had more scoring opportunities. The Tamaraws didn’t miss a beat despite missing midfielder Dexter Chio out with a two-match suspension after he was thrown out of FEU’s previous match against UST where he kicked Tigers defender Joel Bones.

In the third match of the day’s triple-header, UST’s Louie Rodriguez scored to give the Tigers a 1-nil win over UE to stay in third place with 11 points in six matches.

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Pic below: Arturo Enriquez heads DLSU's first goal of a 4-1 thrashing of FEU.