Indonesia stays in hunt with win over Vietnam

An own-goal by Chau Le Puoc Vinh in the 65th minute gifted Indonesia a 1-0 win over Vietnam last night that kept the Indons in contention for the 23rd SEA Games men’s football crown at the Bacolod City Sports Complex.

Vinh accidentally scored for Indonesia in a mad scramble in the Indonesian box and erstwhile unbeaten Vietnam team was unable to equalize, enabling the Indons to escape with the win and stay in the fight for medal plays.

"Vietnam performed quite well but the problem was that they played a bit relax as if no pressure at all," said Indonesian coach Peter With, an Engish.

Singapore also stayed in the hunt for the crown with a 1-0 win over Laos in the second game.

The Vietnamese had the luxury to play half-hearted since they had booked the first slot in the crossover semifinals after sweeping their first three games in the eliminations in Group B.

Nonetheless, the game could have ended a scoreless draw if not for Vinh’s big boo-boo towards the finish.

But despite the loss,Vietnam, losing finalist in the event back home in 2003, topped the Group B competition with nine points on a 3-1-0 win-loss-draw card. — With report from Nelson Beltran