SHAH ALAM, Malaysia — The Philippine Azkals roared to the semifinals of the Asia 7s Championship after thoroughly dominating Vietnam, 10-3, in the crossover quarterfinals Friday night at the EV Arena here.
Mark Hartmann fired four thunderous goals to lead the bombardment for the still spotless Filipinos who will face Hong Kong next for a spot to the Last Dance. Hong Kong defeated Brunei in their side of the quarterfinals, 2-0.
The Azkals previously overpowered HK in Group B hostilities, 6-1, giving them the favorite tag in their dispute for a finals berth versus a heavyweight in either Japan or host Malaysia.
“We don’t underestimate anyone,” the Azkals’ Iranian coach Hamed Hajimahdi said of their next rival. “We go slowly, (taking it) one game by one game. Let’s see if we can go to the final. Hopefully we can be champions.”
It’s been a brilliant run so far for the Azkals, who are making their comeback internationally in the fast-paced game of seven-a-side.
They went 3-0 in the elims at the expense of HK, host Malaysia, 4-3, and India, 9-2, en route to the top seeding in the group.
The Pinoy booters kept this form against Vietnam at the start of the KO rounds.
Hartmann opened the scoring spree at the Vietnamese net.