Laos, Stallions prevail in Smart elims

ILOILO CITY, Philippines – Laos Football Club of Leyte dumped Don Bosco United of Cebu, 4-1, last Wednesday and advanced to the next round of the Smart Club Championships in the all-Visayas regional tournament at the Iloilo Sports Complex here.

In a physical match that saw Laos reduced to 10 men and their foes to nine on a patchy pitch, the Leyte booters banked on an early first-half uprising led by former Coke Go-for-Goal standout Al Ervin Patlunag to eliminate the winless Cebuanos.

The victory also ensured that Laos and Smart Bro Mobile Stallions of Barotac Nuevo, which whipped Don Bosco United, 8-0, in the Tuesday’s opener, would qualify as the Visayas representatives to the next round of the Smart-sponsored competition organized by the Philippine Football Federation.

Laos and Stallions were scheduled to dispute the regional championship at the Central Philippines University football field late Thursday afternoon.

Against the powerhouse hosts, Laos will sorely miss the services of Nigerian striker Ogwejiofor Cusmas, who was booked a red card for a severe tackle on a Cebuano player just outside the box on the right wing shortly after converting a penalty kick in the 24th minute.

The offense meant an automatic one-game suspension for Cusmas, a mainstay of Global Smartmatic in the United Football League, who was immediately sent back to Manila by Leyte Football Association president and national team manager Dan Palami after learning the incident.

“Cusmas is certainly a big loss for us so we will have to redraw our offense without him against Stallions,” said team manager-coach Jojie Ronda. “But we are proud to have qualified for the next round of the tournament, which is a big achievement for us and the Leyte association.”

With Laos going all-out on attack from the beginning, the 27-year-old Patlunag, who saw action for Iligan in the defunct Coke Under-16 tourney, struck from pointblank in front of the goal in the fifth minute off a left cross pass by William Diaz.

After Patlunag was taken down inside the box in the 24th, Cusmas cooly stroked the ball into the left corner past Don Bosco Jessie Sevilla, only to see himself sent off the field a minute later for his senseless tackle. 

Rolly Lear made it 3-0 for Laos at the half with a follow-up goal in the 38th minute.

Just before the first 45 minutes were over, Don Bosco also lost a man when midfielder Edward Lachica was red-carded for intentionally hitting his opponent after tackling him from behind.

With both teams having 10 players on each side, Jade Paghubasan knocked in a goal in the 55th for Cebu.

But Patlunang settled the issue four minutes later by blasting from 35 feet on the right flank off a rebound, the ball slipping through between Sevilla and a Don Bosco defender.

Referee Kent Gabuyan slapped Gilbern Bongaler his second yellow card in the 81st minute that left the Cebuanos with only nine men the rest of the way.