Hosts Indonesia managed to do just enough tonight to walk away with a narrow victory against Laos in their opening AFF Under-19 Championship match at the Gelora Delta Stadium here tonight. A first half goal from Witan Sulaeman secured full points in a Group A game which was littered with misses from the home side.
Laos, who had Phasao Sinonalath sent off in added time, defended well and had their goalkeeper Kitom Venvongsot to thank for stopping numerous Indonesian attempts. Although it was tight result, tonight’s win brought back an avalanche of memories for Indonesia who emerged champions of this tournament, also at this venue, in 2013.
It’s just the opening match and a long way to go, but hopes of a repeat of 2013 are already beginning to grow here. But before that happens the team will have to work on their shooting skills. Indonesian coach Indra Sjafri: “It was good to win the first game but we have to improve on our finishing, we missed many shots at goal.”
In the first half today, Indonesia, fired up by the 13,000 plus fans, got off the mark quickly and were soon on the attack. Saddil Ramdani, Todd Ferre and Syahrian Abimanyu all had their chances but it was finally in the 30th minute when Witan sneaked into the box and sent his side ahead.
If Indonesia thought the floodgates had opened they were wrong. Laos stopped them in their tracks and along the way also had several chances from strikers Nilan and Bounphachan Bounkong.
Indra commented that he had not expect Laos to come out the way they did. “We did not expect that from Laos but my boys responded well.”
Laos coach Chusak Sriphum congratulated Indonesia. “We defended well, both teams had their chances tonight. I also want to thank the fans, they were really good and very sporting. I hope they keep on coming back.”
Meanwhile, Thailand, the defending champions, were held to a 0-0 draw by Vietnam in the opening match of the tournament at the Joko Samudro Stadium in Gresik this afternoon. The Vietnamese players had a better share of the game and failed to get their shots in. Still, both teams displayed good form and will be the ones to watch in the coming games.
Vietnam coach, Hoang Anh Tuan said he was not very happy with the many missed chances. Overall, though he was not too disappointed as Thailand was a strong side and they managed to get a point. “We have to work harder in training so we can improve for the coming matches.
In the other match of the day, the Philippines surprised Singapore with a stunning late goal. With time almost up and both teams tied at 1-1, Fidel Victor Tacardon fired home the winner in the 94th minute. Fidel had earlier scored the opening goal of the game in the 19th minute but Singapore levelled the score in the 78thminute through striker Muhammad Syahadat Masnawi. Â
The Group B matches will be staged tomorrow with Timor Leste taking on Myanmar and Brunei battling Cambodia at the Joko Samudro Stadium.
RESULTSÂ
| Date | Match | Group | Teams | |
| July 1
|
1 | A | VIETNAMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 0
 |
THAILANDÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 0 |
| July 1 | 2 | A | SINGAPOREÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â 1
Syahadat Masnawi 78th |
PHILIPPINESÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 2
Fidel Tacardon 19th, 94th |
| July 1 | 3 | A | INDONESIAÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 1
Witan Sulaeman 30th |
LAOSÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 0 |
Â
FIXTURES
July 2 – Group B: Timor Leste vs Myanmar, Brunei vs Cambodia
July 3 – Group A: Thailand vs Laos, Indonesia vs Singapore, Vietnam vs Philippines
July 4 – Group B: Cambodia vs Malaysia, Brunei vs Timor Leste
July 5 – Group A: Laos vs Vietnam, Philippines vs Indonesia, Thailand vs Singapore
For the complete fixtures, go to http://www.aseanfootball.org/v3/aff-u19-championship-2018/#1526567058939-ef16c19b-91be
