With a chance of sending two players to the Allianz Junior Football Camp, teams from all over Mindanao have made their way to Davao City National High School for the 2019 Allianz National Youth Futsal Invitational Regional Finals-Mindanao Leg.
The first day of the regional finals has been an intense one as a lot of goals have went in and from 23 combined teams for the boys and girls across two age groups, seven has been trimmed heading into the semifinals of the tournament. We now look into the highlights of matchday one.
Corpus Christi FC def. Lianga FC 6-1 (U-16 Boys)
In their first game of the day, the Northern Mindanao winners Corpus Christi FC showed how dominant they can be against Lianga FC. They started the game with taking things slow and passing the ball around.
However, when they got their first goal into the back of the net, there’s no turning back for Corpus Christi as they went on to win six goals to nil against Lianga FC. Despite not keeping a clean sheet, it was still a convincing victory for the boys in blue and yellow.
With that victory, they had a momentum on their side as they went on as well to win their second match of the day against Crocs FC to seal their spot in the semifinals.
Watashi FC 1-1 Pantukan NHS FC (U-16 Girls)
Despite not having a lot of goals in this match, it was still an entertaining match as Watashi FC and Pantukan NHS FC refused to be beaten by one another that’s why they both settled for a draw.
In the first half of the match, Pantukan NHS FC looked to be the dominant side as they were able to pass the ball around and looked for openings of Watashi’s defence. With their patience, they went into the halftime break with a one-nil lead.
Watashi, on the other hand, turned the tables around in the second half as they spent most of the time with the ball. In the end they got a late equalizer as the time run down to share the points. Both teams went on to progress into the semifinals at the end of matchday one.
Tuloy Sa Davao def. Dipolog FC 2-1 (U-14 Boys)
In the final elimination game in the U-14 Boys division, it seemed like Tuloy sa Davao and Dipolog FC saved all their energy to bring their A-game and entertain the crowd at the Davao City National High School Futsal Court.
Both teams kicked off with the desire to win and Dipolog FC their front foot ahead of the competitions as they scored a goal in the first half. It was then equalled by a stunning equalizer before the end of the first period. The second half saw a bit of tit-for-tat action between these sides but in the end, Tuloy sa Davao went home victorious as they slotted in a late goal towards the end of the game.
Despite the win, Tuloy sa Davao failed to progress to the semifinals as they lost their first game against Lianga FC who joined Dipolog FC and Crocs FC into the next stage of the competition.
Calinan FC def. Sakya FC 2-1 (U-14 Girls)
With what proved to be a vital win for Calinan FC, they were able to survive the threat from Sakya FC in their opening match. It was an intense match between these two sides who left everything inside the playing court.
In the first half, Sakya FC found the opening goal as Calinan FC failed to organize their defense. Sakya FC thought they were able to hold down the opposition but Calinan FC refused to be defeated.
As the second half commenced, Calinan FC went on with a barrage of attack against their opponent’s defense and their tenacity paid off. With almost four minutes into the half, Calinan FC got their equalizer before they’ve slotted the victory deep into the final minutes of the second half. Calinan FC made it out of the eliminations unscathed as they also won their second game against Stonefield FC.
Here are the complete results of Matchday 1 of the 2019 Allianz National Youth Futsal Invitational Regional Finals, Mindanao Leg
U-14 Boys
Cafe Kat 1-1 RedCorals Culianan FC
Lianga FC 2-0 Tuloy sa Davao
Crocs FC 2-0 Cafe Kat
Dipolog FC 2-0 Lianga FC
RedCorals Culianan FC 0-1 Crocs FC
Tuloy sa Davao 2-1 Dipolog FC
U-14 Girls
Bulua Strikers 0-2 Cafe Kat
Cafe Kat 0-3 Pantukan NHS FC
Stonefield 1-4 Calinan FC
Pantukan NHS FC 2-0 Bulua Strikers
U-16 Boys
Tagum City Parents Utd 0-2 PCT Alligators
Corpus Christi 6-1 Lianga FC
PCT Alligators 2-1 Holy Cross FC
Lianga FC 1-3 Crocs FC
Holy Cross FC 0-0 Tagum City Parents Utd
Crocs FC 0-2 Corpus Christi FC
