AFC Cup 2009 Round 1 Result : East Zone

GROUP F
Johor (Malaysia) 0-0 VB (Maldives)
South China (Hong Kong) 3-0 PSMS Medan (Indonesia)

GROUP G
Hanoi ACB (Vietnam) 3-1 Kedah (Malaysia)
Chonburi (Thailand) 4-1 Eastern (Hongkong)

GROUP H
Home United (Singapore) 2-1 Becamex Binh Duong (Vietnam)
Club Valencia (Maldives) 1-3 PEA (Thailand)

SAFFC 2-1 PSMS Medan Highlights

SAF 2-1 PSMS Medan

SINGAPORE – Admad Latiff’s historic goal nine minutes into extra-time saw Singapore Armed Forces defeat PSMS Medan 2-1 as the Warriors became the first Singaporean side to qualify for the AFC Champions League.

Therdsak Chaiman, who opened the scoring at Jalan Besar Stadium after 36 minutes and was the star of the show for SAF, found Latiff with an incisive diagonal ball and the latter beat keeper Markus Harison Rihihina from a narrow angle to clinch a second consecutive extra-time victory following last week’s 4-1 triumph over Provincial Electrical Authority.

Mario Costas had cancelled out Therdsak’s effort six minutes after the break but any hope of a late comeback for the Indonesians were effectively ended when Oktovianus Maniani and Edi Sukamoto were sent-off after they fell behind.

SAF started brightly and John Wilkinson had the first good chance after 12 minutes when a neat interchange between Latiff and Aleksandar Duric created an opening but he shot straight at keeper Markus.

Therdsak then found Duric on the edge of the box and the Warriors skipper turned and fired a low drive but Markus palmed the ball away for a corner.

A swift PSMS counter-attack saw Afandi Rachmat surge into the opposition half before picking out Elie Aiboy in the box. The skipper’s first shot was blocked by Hafiz Osman and he fired the rebound just over the bar.

However, SAF took the lead in the 36th minute thanks to a fine effort from Therdsak as the former Thai international weaved his way past Esteban Tejera before drilling a low shot past Markus.

Therdsak, who was the inaugural AFC Champions League MVP after inspiring BEC Tero Sasana to a runner-up finish in 2003, could have grabbed a second on the stroke of half-time but shot wide when free on the edge of the area.

PSMS were more aggressive game in the second-half and grabbed an equaliser after 51 minutes. Having collected a long ball, Elie found Costas and Daniel Bennett allowed the Argentine forward too much time and space to curl a shot into the back of the net.

The ineffective Wilkinson was replaced by Mustaqim Manzur in the 70th minute and SAF immediately regained the initiative but Latiff wasted a chance seven minutes later when his diving header from Shaiful Esah’s cross went agonisingly wide of the far post.

With the game level after 90 minutes, extra-time ensued and Latiff consigned his earlier miss to the past in the 99th minute.

Therdsak was allowed to advance unchallenged to the edge of the area and his diagonal pass found the former Singapore international who found the roof of the net with a powerful strike despite an acute angle.

PSMS were dealt a further blow a minute later when substitute Oktovianus collected his second yellow card after charging into SAF goalkeeper Shahril Jantan.

Edi joined his team-mate in the dressing room when he was also shown a second yellow seven minutes from time as SAF held on to complete a historic victory.

Singapore Armed Forces FC vs PSMS Medan (Indonesia)

What : Singapore Armed Forces FC vs PSMS Medan (Indonesia)

Date : Wednesday, 25th February 2009.
Venue : Jalan Besar Stadium.
Time : 7.30pm

Provincial Electric Authority 1-4 SAFFC

Final Score

Provincial Electric Authority 1 (Apipoon)

SAFFC 4 (Kenji Arai, Therdsak Chaiman 2, Mustaqim Manzur)

Provincial Electric Authority: Umarin Yaodam; Apichet Puttan, Henri Joel, Panupong Wongsa, Rangsan Vivatchaichok; Phonlawut Donchui (Victor Mensah 45’), Yutthajak Konjan, Apipoo Suntornpanavej, Supakit Jinajai; Ronnachai Rangsiyo (Theerathon Bunmathan 70’), Richard Falcao (Lamnao Singto 101’).

SAFFC: Shahril Jantan; Hafiz Osman (Razaleigh Khalik 106’), Daniel Bennett, Kenji Arai, Shaiful Esah; Masahiro Fukasawa, John Wilkinson, Therdsak Chaiman (Syed Karim 120’), Park Tae Won (Mustaqim Manzur 70’); Ahmad Latiff Khamarudin, Aleksandar Duric.

AFC Cup 2009 – Home United In Group H

Group H
1. Valencia (Maldives)
2. Becamex Binh Duong (Vietnam)
3. Home United (Singapore)
4. Play-off – East 1

Home United was drawn in group A and will be meeting Valencia from Maldives and Binh Duong from Vietnam.Home United will also be facing possible PEA from Thailand or Medan from Indonesia.

The group stage kicks off on March 10 and culminates on May 19. The Round of 16 will be played on May 26 for the teams from the West, while the teams from the East will clash on June 23.

The two-legged quarter-finals take place on September 15 and September 30. The semi-finals will be held on October 15 and 21, followed by the finals on October 27 and November 3.

Battle lines drawn for ACL rivals

The stage is set for the AFC Champions League 2009 and there never has been a better time to take a good look at the groups and what they portend for the teams.

Group A

Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia), Pakhtakor (Uzbekistan), Al Ahli (UAE), Saba Battery (Iran)

All four teams in this group have decent pedigree and three of them – Hilal, Pakhtakor and Saba Battery – have previous AFC Champions League experience to bank on.

Pakhtakor are in their seventh straight ACL campaign and will be looking to make up for their 2008 heartbreak.

All four sides have tremendous fan support, which means the away games will count heavily towards the points, besides deep pockets to make key buys.

Hilal and Pakhtakor look like the two obvious candidates from this group for berths in the next phase.

Group B

Persepolis (Iran), Al Shabab (Saudi Arabia), Al Gharafa (Qatar), Playoff winner (West)

An exciting series of contests can be expected in this group, which contains some of the biggest names in West Asian club football.

Persepolis, Shabab and Gharafa have all seen ACL action in the past and know well what awaits them on the continental stage.

The face-off between Shabab and Persepolis – two clubs with some of the biggest fan following in Asia – would be interesting to watch. Al Gharafa would be determined to prove they are no rollovers.

The top two spots could be taken up by Persepolis and Shabab but surprises cannot be ruled out.

Group C

Al Jazira (UAE), Esteghlal (Iran), Al Ittihad (Saudi Arabia), Umm Salal (Qatar)

The so called ‘Group of Death’ – according to the current poll on the-afc.com – this section features two-time former champions Al Ittihad, and two of the fastest rising clubs in West Asia in Umm Salal and Al Jazira.

Add to this the classy pedigree and reputation of Esteghlal, one of the most popular clubs in Iran, and the picture is complete.

The upstarts from UAE and Qatar are expected to give the seasoned campaigners a run for their money. But it remains to be seen if they can prevail over the experience and wiles of the two heavyweights.

Only Ittihad have seen action in the ACL in its current avatar but Esteghlal are no strangers to the cut-throat competition, having won the Asian Club Championship in 1990.

A top-two finish is within the grasp of Ittihad and Esteghlal if they manage to keep the others at bay.

Group D

Bunyodkor (Uzbekistan), Al Shabab (UAE), Sepahan (Iran), Al Ettifaq (Saudi Arabia)

Sepahan and Bunyodkor are expected to make a one-two finish in this section, which also has newcomers Shabab and Ettifaq.

The power and confidence of Sepahan and Bunyodkor was on display in the previous editions and only a brave man would bet against their qualifying for the last 16.

Shabab and Ettifaq are big names to reckon with locally but may lack the experience and firepower required to succeed on the Asian platform.

The match-up to watch out for would be between last year’s rivals Sepahan and Bunyodkor.

Group E

Ulsan Hyundai (Korea Republic), Newcastle Jets (Australia), Beijing Guo’an (China), Nagoya Grampus (Japan)

Going purely by previous ACL slug-out experiences, Ulsan and Beijing can claim to have a treasure trove of memories.

Both sides have been in the thick of continental action and know what kind of opponents to expect.

Newcastle and Nagoya are debutants but the Australian and Japanese side will be keen to emulate the success of Adelaide and Gamba, respectively.

The long-running rivalry between Japanese and Korean clubs will once again take centre stage.

Group F

Gamba Osaka, (Japan), FC Seoul (Korea Republic), Sriwijaya (Indonesia), Shandong Luneng (China)

Gamba Osaka, the reigning champions, squeezed into the draw at the very last minute in dramatic fashion but the Japanese club’s determination to defend their crown is not in doubt.

Shandong are the only other side in this group to have seen continental fireworks before.

Debutants Sriwijaya are not expected to pose much of a problem.

A three-cornered fight is likely to decide the top two positions, which guarantees a last 16 berth.

Group G

Shanghai Shenhua (China), Kashima Antlers (Japan), Suwon Bluewings (Korea Republic), Playoff winner (East)

All three teams have seen top-flight continental action, making for an interesting tussle.

Shanghai, Kashima and Suwon all have a huge fan base and at least one of these clubs – Shanghai – has made the 2009 ACL a priority.

The winner of the playoff is expected to provide a surprise angle to the battle.

All in all, an unpredictable and widely open group, which means the clubs have everything to play for.

Group H

Central Coast Mariners (Australia), Tianjin Teda (China), Kawasaki Frontale (Japan), Pohang Steelers (Korea Republic)

At first glance, Kawasaki and Pohang look like solid bets to progress to the next stage. Both are big clubs with previous ACL experience.

In fact, Pohang twice won the Asian Club Championship in 1996-97 and 1997-98.

But the spoilsport factor of hungry first-timers Tianjin and Central Coast Mariners cannot be ruled out completely. The duo might be new to the continental fray but quite capable of springing a surprise or two.

Tianjin, with their huge fan base and players, in particular, could put a spanner in the hopes of the fancied two.

ACL 2009 Draw set for January 7

KUALA LUMPUR: The draw for the revamped AFC Champions League (ACL) will be held on January 7 at the Emirates Group HQ in Dubai, starting at 11am local time.

Gamba Osaka’s victory in the Emperor’s Cup on January 1 provided the final piece of the jigsaw as they became the 30th team to qualify for the continent’ premier club competition.

The 2009 ACL will feature 32 teams in the group stages instead of the 28 in previous events. Prize money has been increased with US$1.5 million for the winners and US$750,000 for the runners-up.

Japan, China, Iran, Korea Republic and Saudi Arabia have four representatives in the competition because these countries were deemed to be the most professional in the way their leagues are run.

United Arab Emirates have three entries; there are two each from Australia, Qatar and Uzbekistan while Indonesia have one side playing in the main competition.

UAE and Indonesia also have on team each in the play-offs.

The group stage comprises eight pools of four teams each. No pool will have two teams from the same country. Groups A-D will feature West Asian and Central Asian teams while Groups E-H comprises East Asian and Asean teams.

The top two sides, after a round-robin, advance to the round of 16, in which the top teams are at home for a straight one-match, knock-out competition.

An open draw is then conducted for the quarter-finals. Home-and-away format will be used until the final, which is a one-off match in Tokyo.

The play-offs feature one team each from India, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and UAE vying for two berths in the 32-team draw.

AFC Champions League Participating Clubs

Main competition

Australia (two teams)
Central Coast Mariners
Newcastle Jets

China (four)
Shandong Luneng
Shanghai Shenhua
Beijing Guoan
Tianjin Teda

Indonesia (one)
Sriwijaya

Iran (four)
Persepolis
Esteghlal
Sepahan
Saba Battery

Japan (four)
Kashima Antlers
Gamba Osaka
Kawasaki Frontale
Nagoya Grampus

Korea Republic (four)
Suwon Bluewings
Pohang Steelers
FC Seoul
Ulsan Hyundai

Qatar (two)
Al Gharafa
Umm Salal

Saudi Arabia (four)
Al Hilal
Al Shabab
Al Ittihad
Al Ettifaq

United Arab Emirates (three)
Al Shabab
Al Ahli
Al Jazira

Uzbekistan (two)
Bunyodkor
Pakhtakor

Play-off competition

Dempo (India)
PSMS Medan (Indonesia)
Armed Forces (Singapore)
Provincial Electricity Authority (Thailand)
Al Sharjah (UAE)

SAFFC face off with PEA of Thailand

KUALA LUMPUR: The draw for the playoffs of the AFC Champions League 2009 was held here on Thursday with five teams coming out of the pots.

The play-offs are divided into West and East qualifiers, each zone providing one qualifier for the main competition.

Thailand’s Provincial Electricity Authority entertain the Singapore Armed Forces FC at the Thammasat University Rangsit Stadium in the first match of the East zone competition on February 18, 2009.

The winners will then play at home against Indonesia’s PSMS Medan on February 25, 2009, with a place in the ACL at stake.

For the West, United Arab Emirates side Al Sharjah will host Indian champions Dempo SC at the Sharjah Stadium on February 25 for a place in the group stages of the 32-team ACL.

Play-off Match Schedule

East

February 18, 2009:

Provincial Electricity Authority FC (Thailand) v Singapore Armed Forces FC (Singapore), 6pm, Thammasat University Rangsit Stadium.

February 25, 2009:

Winner of Feb 18, 2009 match v PSMS Medan (Indonesia). Venue: Thammasat University (6pm) or Jalan Besar Stadium (7.30pm) depending on home team.

West

February 25, 2009:

Al Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) v Dempo (India), 7pm, Sharjah Stadium.

Singapore debut in Asian Champion League 2009

Singapore representative,Singapore Armed Forces will compete against champion of Vietnam,Thailand and Indonesia for a place in the inagural prestigious Asian Champion League 2009 group stage.There are Binh Duong from Vietnam,PEA from Thailand and Sriwijaya from Indonesia.

The first play-off match will be on 18 February next year and the second play-oo if win,will be on 25 February.The venue is still not confirm.

Meanwhile,these are teams that will compete alongside Home United in the AFC Cup next year:

East Asia (12 teams)
- Hong Kong: 2 teams (South China, Citizen)
- Malaysia: 2 teams (Kedah, Negeri Sembilan)
- Maldives: 2 teams (Club Valencia, VB Sports)
- Singapore: 1 team (Home United)
- Thailand: 1 team (Chonburi)
- Vietnam: 1 team (Hanoi ACB)
- ACLQ: 3 teams