UFL: Loyola Meralco Sparks edge plucky Air Force for third straight win

In a battle of two teams riding back-to-back victories, it was the Loyola Meralco Sparks that extended their streak to three, beating a plucky Air Force side 2-0, Tuesday at the Emperador Stadium. End-to-end action in the first half lit up the field, with Air Force offering up some spirited resistance early on, but a perfectly weighted through ball from Phil Younghusband unlocked the defense, to send his brother James through on goal to slot in the opener. Staunch play by the Air Force kept them in the game, mostly because of keeper Kenneth Dolloso’s saves, as he held Loyola at bay for most of the game. But in the 80th minute. Phil Younghusband converted a penalty after some poor defending, to make the game more comfortable for his side. The game then ended in fiery fashion as the two teams squared up to each other, Jang Joo Won going up against one Airman and the two feigning to headbutt each other, before Antonio Albor jumped in and slapped Jang in the head. This gave a sour end to the game, which had otherwise been competitive and well played out, with Antonio Albor sent off. First half Allowed little space, Phil Younghusband shot over and Mark Hartmann shot straight at Kenneth Dolloso in the opening minutes as the Sparks controlled the early possession. In the eighth minute Mark Hartmann found space on the right wing to curl a low cross for Phil Younghusband, who had drifted between the two center backs, and though it was a difficult chance given the angle, he could have done better than tapping wide from a few yards out. In the 18th minute the Sparks countered and Phil Younghusband got the ball in the middle of the pitch to play a brilliant through ball for his brother James. The older Younghusband brother took a touch forward, racing towards goal, and poked the ball under Dolloso to open the scoring for Loyola. Soon after, the younger Younghusband wriggled his way through six players and managed to get a shot on goal, to the bottom corner, forcing Dolloso to turn the ball away well for a corner. The Sparks again came close to scoring a second goal as Jeong Byeong Jeol was played in on the right wing in the 27th minute. Crossing in for Phil Younghusband, the ball got tangled between his feet, allowing Dolloso to dive and save. A similar chance almost gave the Air Force an equalizer as Antonio Albor was played in on the left wing, after some smart passing from the Airmen. Albor cut the ball back for Araneta who couldn’t get his feet from under him quick enough to tap into the net in the 35th minute. Then in the 40th, Loyola really should have been two up as Jeong played in Phil Younghusband on the counter. In space on the left, he took aim, but shot straight into Dolloso’s gloves as the Air Force keeper made his eighth save of the game, though he should have been tested more. It almost cost the Sparks as the Air Force went up the other end and Ian Araneta fired at goal. Ref Cuaresma was up to the challenge, but the Loyola defense wasn’t so far, as they allowed the chance far too easily. Before the half ended, Kenneth Dolloso again kept his side in the game. Matthew Hartmann was played in by Jeong, and was through on goal, when Dolloso dove down and blocked his left-footed shot. Second half Things got a little more heated in the second half as Matthew Hartmann shielded the ball from Martinez, who got hurt from the play, but Joebel Bermejo came crashing into Hartmann in retaliation, wiping out the left winger. Loyola headed over in the 60th minute as Simon Greatwich crossed into the six-yard box, but a minute later, Phil Younghusband had an ever better chance, as more fluid passing found Matthew Hartmann who played the final ball for Younghusband. The ball however went straight into the legs of Dolloso, but the keeper got up gingerly, and soon went down again, holding his ankle and receiving treatment. A minute later, and he was off the pitch writhing in pain, several minutes of treatment passing before he limped back onto the field. After kicking the ball from his hands, he again clutched his ankle. The next substitution though was Angelo Marasigan coming on for Matthew Uy before Mark Ferrer made an appearance for the Air Force. In the 78th minute, Phil Younghusband was sent through on the left wing, and bearing down on goal, his left footed shot was saved by Dolloso, but the Air Force defense clattered into the back of Loyola’s attacker, to gift them a penalty in the second phase. After an unconvincing game, Phil Younghusband stepped up to take the penalty and just beat Dolloso to his left by inches. A couple of minutes later and the teams erupted into fighting though, with Jang Joo Won on the end of a short headbutt. Antonio Albor then rushed up to the Korean and the two squared-up against each other, resulting in Albor slapping his man in the head. After the melee, which saw the benches emptied and coaches and substitutes on the pitch, Albor was sent off for the raised hand while Jang Joo Won got a yellow for his part. Once the game restarted, Mark Hartmann curled in a free-kick in the 89th minute from the edge of the area. Dolloso got down to tip the ball onto the post for a fantastic save and as James Younguhsband followed up to head the ball into the net, he was brought back for offside. In injury time, Mark Hartmann was free near the penalty spot and fired at goal, but Dolloso again managed to palm the ball away with another impressive stop to keep the score at 2-0. What’s next for the teams A third win in a row gives Loyola a lot of momentum going into their next game against PSG on May 9, but this wasn’t the convincing victory that it looked it would be on paper. Looking to extend their winning streak, few would bet against them doing so with the kind of firepower at their disposal, but thanks to Dolloso’s heroics, the Stallions have now scored more goals, with 41 for the season compared to Loyola’s 38. Before this game, the Air Force had back-to-back wins for their first points in the league. They may still be flying low on six points, but at least they’re off the ground and are ahead of the Army, who replace them at the foot of the table. To avoid the automatic relegation slot, they will need a few more points and will have the chance to pick up more, also on May 9, against the Green Archers. - AMD, GMA News