The Philippine National Men’s Football Team ended its two-year Peace Cup title reign, losing to neighboring Myanmar (Burma), 2-3, in extra period Saturday at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.
84 minutes after the opening goal by striker Kyaw Ko Ko, midfielder Min Min Thu put 30 minutes more on the clock after heading in the equalizer from a long cross pass within the added four minutes of injury time after the 90th minute, which sent the game to extra time and unnerving an already celebrating Filipino crowd of 5,000.
In the 100th minute, Soe Min Oo struck the winner with a sharp strike off an earlier deflection by Azkals goalie Roland Muller, finding space near the lower left corner to give his team the win.
The Azkals never answered back in the succeeding minutes, shooting from the hip wayward blanks on the goal.
Prior to the late Burmese heroics, the Azkals went ahead 2-1 with a piercing strike from midfielder Daisuke Sato in the 50th minute off a cross.
The Azkals were then given a gimmie in the 71st minute as Phil Younghusband goaled a penalty kick after Patrick Reichelt received a foul from a Burmese defender in a breakaway play.
This is the first time in the tournament’s three-year history that the Philippines has failed to lift the trophy, and the first time the Azkals has lost on home soil since its 2014 FIFA World Cup Qualifier loss to Kuwait in 2011.
The AFC Challenge Cup Runners-up barged in to the Finals with a 5-1 shellacking of Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) while Myanmar did a similar beating to war-torn Palestine, 4-1.
In the battle for third place, the Challenge Cup champions and 2015 AFC Asia Cup qualifiers routed Chinese Taipei, 7-3, also in extra time.
Phil Younghusband celebrates with Mark Hartmann and Carli de Murga after converting a penalty at the 70th minute to put the Azkals up 1-2 against Myanmar. The visitors, however, forced extra time with a last-minute equalizer where Soe Min Oo slipped past the PHL defense in the 100th minute to beat the hosts 3-2 in the 2014 Peace Cup. Photo by Martin San Diego
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