High
stakes Sunday football @the UFL
The cast is pretty much set for the
knockout stages of the 2012 UFL Cup. Except for Group C.
Due to the inclement weather the
metropolis had to put up with two weeks ago, two play dates were postponed and
that included the Thursday, October 25 matches that were to pit Loyola and
Mendiola and Pachanga against Laos.
Those matches will be re-played on
Sunday, November 4, at the University of Makati with the Sparks taking on
Mendiola at 7pm while Pachanga takes the field at 9pm.
Loyola, Pachanga, and Nomads are all
in the running for the two slots from their group for the next stage of the
tourney. Nomads’ 3-0-1 record gives them nine points. They have scored 10 goals
but also conceded the same number leaving them with a zero goal difference.
That still puts them in danger of being ousted despite their record as Loyola
and Pachanga still have that one match to play albeit with a superior goal
difference.
The latter two squads both have a
2-0-1 record although the Sparks have a plus-seven goal difference to the
plus-three of Pachanga.
Mendiola and Laos will both try to
play the spoiler here. Mendiola, in its return to top-flight football following
a year-long suspension, have, like Laos, a 0-1-2 record. Of the two, Mendiola
has the worst goal difference in the group as they have a minus-eight to Laos’
minus-two.
The Sparks are fully rested for this
match unlike the previous week where they went into the third place battle for
the 2012 Singapore Cup and they paid for it with a 4-0 loss. Like Pachanga,
they are not only looking for the three points but also goals.
A win by both Loyola and Pachanga will
see them through regardless of the goals scored. A draw will be fatal to their
title aspirations.
Other matches taking place on Sunday
will see Team Socceroo play Navy to stay out of the cellar of Group A at the
Army Support Command Field (Ascom) at 330pm. Both teams have 0-0-3 records and
have yet to find the back of the net. Team Socceroo has the worst goal
difference in this tournament as they have allowed opponents 21 goals. Navy has
let in only 12, fourth worst in the league after Team Socceroo (21), Dolphins
United (17), and Agila (15).
Over at Nomads Sports Club, in another
battle of teams out of the running, Sta. Lucia and Air Force, the deposed
titlists will take on the second team of Stallion at 830pm. Air Force was
shockingly ousted last Tuesday by Stallion, 5-1. That left the reeling military
club with a flat 1-1-1 record; the same slate as Sta. Lucia. Air Force has
scored only four goals while conceding six. They would love nothing more than
to bow out with a win more so against Stallion’s Team B but the latter, while
still lacking in cohesion and firepower, looks to lock up Air Force.
One sub-plot to look at for this match
is there are two Caligdongs on both sides. Chieffy, long time national player
is with Air Force while cousin, Jun, is on Sta. Lucia’s roster. Sta. Lucia
still has its Iloilo roots like Air Force. So for the third in four matches for
both teams, this one’s for bragging rights back home.
The 2012 UFL Cup knockout stages kick
off this Tuesday, November 6.
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