THE ATENEO Men’s Football Team began their University Athletic Association of the Philippines title defense with a grueling 1-1 draw against the University of the Philippines (UP) on Thursday, March 3, at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila City. 

Francis Tacardon drew first blood for UP midway through the second half, but Nino Herrera slotted in a penalty that put Ateneo level late in the match. The draw places the defending champions at joint third in the standings alongside UP, De La Salle University and Far Eastern University with a 0-1-0 record and a +0 goal difference. 

Ateneo managed an early attack just two minutes into the match, but this was quickly met by UP’s defense. The Fighting Maroons retaliated in the 16th minute and manufactured three shots on-target but were each denied by Ateneo’s goalkeeper AJ Arcilla. 

UP maintained control of the ball and continued to apply pressure as the first half progressed. Ateneo’s defense absorbed the consecutive attacks well, safely dealing with crosses and passes played into the box. Allowing UP space and time on the ball, the Blue Eagles opted to play long balls to counter-attack and catch the defense off guard but were unable to find the runs of the strikers behind the defense. 

Team Captain Nino Herrera had the chance to notch one for Ateneo in the 45th minute, but his freekick attempt landed right into the hands of UP’s goalkeeper Harel Dayan, resulting in a goalless first half.

The Blue Eagles came charging out of the gate once action resumed, launching an attack in the 46th minute that was confidently secured by Dayan. During the 57th minute, UP created space in Ateneo’s corner which the Blue Eagles dealt with temporarily. However, the referee’s call on this play was met with confusion, and Ateneo’s failure to clear the ball allowed UP rookie Tacardon to claim possession and take a shot that slipped past Arcilla to put the Fighting Maroons in the lead.

Tacardon’s goal opened the floodgates. But after key changes from Head Coach Jaypee Merida, the Blue Eagles began to play with a sense of urgency and found their rhythm again. In the 80th minute, a stellar hold up play by Luca Alleje allowed the forward to find Jimi Haosen, who was fouled inside the penalty area. Herrera then stepped up and calmly dispatched the penalty into the bottom right corner to draw his team level. 

From that point on, the game was fairly even as both teams carved out half chances in search of the elusive winning goal. Ateneo saw a glimmer of hope in the dying minutes of the match as substitute Sky Guerrero’s long ball set up Mark Nacional who sprinted towards the goal while being chased down by three UP defenders. Despite Nacional’s good footwork, his final go-ahead attempt was thwarted by UP’s defender, ensuring a draw at the final whistle.

The Ateneo Men’s Football Team hopes to tally their first win of the season when they face the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers on Sunday, March 8, 1:30 PM at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila City.

Ateneo Starting XI: Arcilla (GK); W. Lopez, Grierson, Liao, J. Dy; Mercado, Herrera (c),  Nacional, Haosen; Lim, Alleje

UP Starting XI: Dayan (GK); Borlongan, Bugayong, Clarino (c), Fracturan; Lapas, Magadato, Saavedra, Sanciangco; Tacardon, Tobias

Substitutions:

57’ – Setters on for Lim

63’ -Young on for Liao

65’ – Cordero on for W. Lopez

83’ – Laud on for Haosen

90’ – Guerrero on for Herrera