UST leapfrogs past DLSU in UAAP football

This appears in the Monday February 7, 2011 edition of the Business Mirror.


UST leapfrogs past DLSU in UAAP football

by rick olivares
pics by brosi gonzales

Ojay Clariño bucked fatigue, hecklers, and a scolding by his coach to score deep into injury time to give UST a rousing 1-nil win over De La Salle.

With the game seemingly headed for another scoreless draw between the erstwhile second and third place teams, Clariño got the ball inside the box and was able to turn to his left and get a shot off. The shot sent DLSU keeper Patrick Deyto towards the first post but the ball instead skittered towards the opposite direction and right through La Salle defender Mathew Nierras’ legs for the score.

Clariño, celebrated his goal by clutching his jersey with the UST seal while looking at the La Salle crowd that heckled him for the entire second half. Clariño actually played for La Salle Greenhills in high school (he went to Marist for his elementary schooling).

The win gave UST three full points and they leapfrogged past La Salle 14-12 in points accrued from the UAAP Season 73 Men’s Football Tournament.

The Tigers dominated the match for three quarters until La Salle’s timely substitutions gave them fresh legs. With UST midfielder John Ronald Caballero out with cramps, the connection from central back David Basa to Caballero to playmaker Shinmar Felongco was disrupted. La Salle took advantage of the suddenly shaky UST midfield for a series of scoring chances.

“We really have to work on our finishing,” said UST coach Marjo Allado after the match. “We seem to have a problem playing the full 90 minutes so maybe our conditioning needs to be reviewed. I am just thankful that we were able to find our game. The Tigers have strung up three impressive victories after struggling early in the tournament. They beat Ateneo 4-0, FEU by 4-1, and now title contender La Salle.

The goal was Clariño’s third score of the competition.

In the second match, UE beat Ateneo 1-0 when Gringo Bravo pounced on a mistake by the Blue Booters’ defense. With the ball at the edge of the box, Ateneo keeper Joel Faustino ran out to claim the ball. But defenders Miguel Tuason and Gabriel Manalo also went at the ball and the resulting confusion resulted in a poor clearance that landed right in front of Bravo who was straddling the penalty area. With a keeperless goal, he simply slotted the ball home for the game’s only score.

It was UE’s first win in seven matches (1 win, 4 draws, 2 losses).

In the main match of the day, UP’s Stephen Permanes scored what could very well go down as one of the best goals of the tournament when he beat the offside trap and booted in a wicked shot from the left outside corner of the box that sailed towards the far end of the FEU goal beyond the outstretched arms of keeper Ronnie Aguisanda.

UP's 1-nil win kept them in firm possession of first place. They now have a total of 19 points from 7 matches (six wins and one draw).

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This wasn't just La Salle's week in football. It began Saturday when the Juniors team spotted Ateneo 2-0 at the 55 minute mark. The Blue Booters scored three goals almost in succession to beat DLSZ. In the men's match, UST snuck one in the second minute of injury time and several hours later, UST scored with five minutes left in the match to knock the defending women's champs out of the title race.