Friday, March 11, 2011

Azkals seeded in Ulan Bator despite obstacles

[Members of the Azkals wave the Philippine flag during the team’s bout against Mongolia in Panaad Stadiun in Bacolod City. AFP file photo]


THE Philippine football team, Azkals, are seeded despite facing several obstacles when they face the Mongolian national team on March 15 in the latter’s turf.

Lawyer Roland A. Tulay, the president of the National Capital Region Football Association (NCRFA), told The Manila Times that the Azkals are facing extreme cold weather; the absence of some key players; the artificial turf of the home pitch and possibly, a highly-partisan crowd.

“On paper, we should beat Mongolia because of our higher FIFA standing,” he said.

But Tulay said that the aforementioned factors can present problems for the Azkals.

Foremost is the cold weather in Mongolia, which could reach four to 10 degrees below zero. Prior to flying to Mongolia, the national team trained for one week in Japan to help them adjust to the cold weather.

Tulay also said the Azkals must adjust to the artificial turf. They have trained at the International School which has this facility. “They will be playing on artificial turf. The bounce and roll of the ball is different, the ball rolls faster,” he added.

When the Azkals beat the Vietnamese during the Suzuki Cup and the Mongolians in Bacolod City, the national team played on natural grass.

Adding to the obstacles the Azkals must overcome is the absence of key player Neil Etheridge and other key players; the former having commitments to his new club Charlton Athletic in England’s Division One.

To fill up the gaping hole left by Etheridge, the Azkals will be relying on the services of the able Edward Sacapano who hails from Bago, Negros Occidental.

But perhaps the biggest challenge the Azkals will be facing in Mongolia is the expected hostile crowd.

When the Azkals faced the Mongolian team on February 10, Tulay recalled that the visiting team was welcomed with “arf, arf, arf” from the local crowd. They were told that this unique chant was the bark of the Azkals which meant “street dogs.” Nevertheless, the visiting team was feted to a warm round of applause at the end of 90 minutes.

/via Manila Times (via Condrad Carino, 3/11/2011)

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