Philstar.com will be publishing a series of articles on the build-up to the 10th Anniversary of the historic 2010 Suzuki Cup
MANILA, Philippines — If Michael Jordan had his bad pizza game that was recently talked about in "The Last Dance: documentary, the Philippine men’s football team’s top scorer — Phil Younghusband — had his own version the night and the morning of perhaps its most historic and pivotal game ever.
It was a Sunday morning, the 5th of December of 2010, and almost all the coaches and players of the Azkals were in the dining area of the Sheraton Hanoi Hotel for breakfast. The team’s trainer, Josef Malinay came down with a frown on his face and made a beeline for head coach Simon McMenemy and team manager Dan Palami. The two quickly got up from their table and went upstairs.
Word quickly filtered amongst the players that Younghusband was ill.
It seemed that he was up all night throwing up. Apparently, he had eaten something that did not agree with his physiology.
Phil’s roommate in all of the national team’s travels was his strike mate, Ian Araneta.
“Hindi ko alam kung meron nakain si Phil nakaiba pero sobrang worried ko kasi masamang masama yung pakiramdam niya at hindi siya makatulog,” recalled Araneta. “Nakatulog din naman ako kasi kailangan ng pahinga para magipon ng lakas para sa laro.”
“I remember that the food was a bit oilier than it should have been,” recalled then Azkals teammate Chieffy Caligdong. While no other teammate suffered from any stomach flu, three other starters were suffering from some knocks from the highly physical match against Singapore three nights earlier that ended in a 1-1 draw following a late goal from midfielder Chris Greatwich; earning the country’s first ever point from its Southeast Asian neighbor.
While Younghusband offered to play, his being on the starting eleven remained a game time decision. Roel Gener was inserted in place of an injured Caligdong and the coaching staff looked into the possibility of moving another player in should Younghusband not be able to suit up.
Phil however mustered the strength to play and even scored the Azkals’ second goal that put away Vietnam, then the defending champion of the Suzuki Cup.
Chris Greatwich, who had a superb tournamen,t scored off a header following a brilliant forward pass by right back Anton del Rosario to put the Philippines ahead 1-nil right before the halftime break. However, the Philippines had to survive several frightening chances by Vietnam. Goalkeeper Neil Etheridge’s heroics prevented the home side from equalizing.
Late in the game, Greatwich fed Younghusband, who ditched his defender with a nifty 1-on-1 move to score from just outside the box; a goal that gave the Philippines a huge cushion that silenced the 40,000 people who packed My Dinh National Stadium.
When the victorious Azkals repaired to their locker room, it was a scene of jubilant pandemonium as coaches and players doused each other with Gatorade and water. In a nearby cubicle, a spent Younghusband retched one last time. he had given it his all and was handsomely repaid.
And Philippine football would never be the same following the events of that dramatic evening.
Said Younghusband at the hotel where the team was greeted by the Singaporean and Burmese squads at the entrance, “Even if I wasn’t 100%, I had to give it my all. This was for the country.”