THE ATENEO Men’s Football Team continued their unbeaten run in a 1-0 win versus the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Growling Tigers on Saturday, March 25 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.
The win puts the Blue Eagles at a 8-2-0 record with a +17 goal difference in Season 79 of the University Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Football tournament.
The match, which started at 8PM, started sluggishly for the two squads. Both Ateneo and UST’s best opportunities came from set-pieces in the first 13 minutes, but neither squad could capitalize from them. The Blue Eagles eventually started to get better attacking opportunities. In the 17th and 19th minute, Nino Herrera and Jarvey Gayoso, respectively, broke free at the left of the box but both their passes did not lead to anything substantial.
Ateneo continued to put pressure on the Growling Tigers with chances on goal as the first half progressed. In the 44th minute, Jordan Jarvis attempted to curve a goal from far out, but the shot landed on the top-netting. The match was stuck at a 0-0 deadlock by halftime.
The second half was packed with more attacking play from both sides, especially from the Growling Tigers. Three minutes into the period, Ateneo keeper AJ Arcilla was tested with a thundering strike from close distance. UST had a shot from the same area five minutes later, but it turned to be off wide. Moments later, the Growling Tigers had a golden opportunity after the goal was left open from an Arcilla dive, but the shot was scuffed and hit the side-netting.
The amount of missed opportunities from the Blue Eagles in the second half was numerous. In the 74th minute, good build-up play from Ateneo led to Gayoso finding Julian Roxas open a few yards outside the box, but the right-footed strike from the co-captain unluckily hit the bar. Three minutes later, Jordan Jarvis dribbled into the box and drew a corner. The ensuing corner kick found Jayrah Rocha; however, he hit the top left corner of the bar yet again. A few moments later, Jordan Jarvis received a through ball that threaded through the entire UST defense and had only the keeper to beat, but his shot went wide left after he tried to curl it into the goal.
The Blue Eagles finally got the coveted goal, albeit with a bit of luck. In the 82nd minute, Gayoso dribbled down the left and fired a cross inside the box that did not connect with any of his teammates. Unfortunately for UST, the attempt to clear the ball hit midfielder Marvin Bricenio, and the ball deflected and landed at the back of the net. The own-goal proved to be the deciding moment in the match, as Ateneo held on to their lead and got the win.
After the match, Coach JayPee Merida said that the team was a bit unlucky today considering the amount and quality of chances that they had. “Ang dami naming chances. Hindi siya basta chances lang nangyari. Pinaghirapan from the defensive third, talagang na-link yung bola sa attacking third,” (We had many chances. They were not just chances that came out of nowhere, but chances that the team worked hard on, especially with the linking of the defensive and attacking thirds) Merida explained. “Hindi talaga ma-finish [the chances]. Ang daming crossbar, ang daming straight to the keeper, ang daming off-target (The chances could not really be finished. A lot crossbar, a lot of straight to the keeper, a lot of off-target).”
Ateneo’s next match will be against the Adamson Falcons on Saturday, April 1 5PM at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.
Starting XI:
Ateneo: Arcilla (GK), Alilam, Ceniza, Gayoso, Grierson, Herrera, Jarvis, Mathay, Rocha, Poe, Roxas
UST: Abraham (GK), Busmion Da., Busmion Di., De Castro, Dimacali, Gumban, Molino, Pasion, Rafol, Regala, Tuzon
Substituions:
Ateneo: 42’ Liay on for Alilam, 57’ Haosen on for Herrera, 65’ Nacional on for Mathay, 72’ Baña on for Ceniza, 82’ Gaudiel on for Grierson, 90’ Tanchuan on for Roxas
UST: 67’ Menares on for Rafol, 76′ Bricenio on for Gumban
A UST own-goal late in the match proved to be the deciding factor and gave Ateneo the victory
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