Masbate booters held off the Ceres-Negros Selection to a goalless draw last night to end the Group A stage of the Philippine Football Federation Suzuki Under-23 National Cup at the Panaad Park and Stadium in Mansilingan, Bacolod City.
The host-team topped Group A with a total of 7 points after having two wins and a draw, which advance them to the semi-finals on May 15 in Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo and take Group B No.2 Davao FA.
“Though we topped the Group, I wasn’t happy with our last game’s outcome. The boys lost focus on the game. This was the worst performance we had in the quarterfinals. We had many clear attempts, but we failed to convert,” Negros head coach Norman Fegidero explained.
The Negrense squad had several close range attempts inside the box but Masbate defense denied the hosts a goal.
Negrense striker Joshua Beloya, who scored five consecutive goals against Dipolog squad on Sunday, was denied ball access by the Masbate defense.
“I have to give credit to Masbate. They prepared well for us, especially on their counter-attacks,” the Negros team coach added.
Meanwhile, Fegidero said that they will have lots of preparations to make as they enter the semis next Sunday. “We have to be more prepared and make some adjustments, if necessary,” he stressed.
In the other match, National Capital Region (NCR) Team B made a grand exit from the competition and qualified in the semis next weekend as they trashed Dipolog yesterday, 6-0.
Striker Ojay Clarino broke out of his two-match funk by scoring his first four goals in the quarterfinals, including a dazzling move in the 32nd minute when he went through and around five Dipolog defenders before sending the ball past keeper Rizziel Villaespin.
Other semifinalist is Iloilo FA which topped Group B on a 4-1 win over Davao yesterday at the University of the Philippines-Los Baños in Laguna. (Jerome S. Galunan Jr.)
Published in the Sun.Star Bacolod newspaper on May 11, 2011.
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