UFL: Team Socceroo draws Pachanga, 2-2

A Nate Burkey-less Pachanga PLDT Home Fibr FC drew Team Socceroo 2-2, Thursday at the Emperador Stadium, in the sole UFL offering, as its partner match between Global FC and Kaya FC had been played a day earlier on Wednesday, to accommodate 12 national team players between the two clubs.

Only Pachanga’s Burkey missed this tight offering to be with the Azkals for their March 1 friendly versus Malaysia.

Though they were without BUrkey, Daniel Gadia and Jinggoy Valmayor were back playing for Pachanga since UAAP football season had officially wrapped up. Their numbers were still diminished however, as Reza Amirkhizan was suspended on accumulated yellow cards, and veteran Anto Gonzales was not 100 percent and did not start in this game.

15 minutes into the match, Team Socceroos’s Jeong Woo Lee got the first goal. Pachanga keeper Steve Yambou had ventured out too early and Deo Segunial was unable to stop Lee. Yambou was unable to get back in his area on time and Lee just slotted the ball in.

However 10 minutes later, Pachanga’s Ariel Zerrudo got the equalizer. Socceroo keeper Guillerme Hasegawa managed a foot on the ball, but it bounced off and rolled in.

In a crazy free kick sequence, Socceroo’s Yi Young sent the ball to Lee inside the box, confusing the defense. Yambou got a hand on the ball but collapsed atop a couple of players and fumbled the ball. A Socceroo player then got to the ball and sent it toward the goal but one of the Pachanga players cleared it right off the line and sent it out.

32 minutes in, Valmayor got Pachanga’s second goal, sending the ball into the lower right corner from inside the box. Valmayor had missed the UAAP finals because of a red card and was probably eager to get back into scoring mode.

Pachanga held a 2-1 lead going into the second half and had more than enough chances in the second half but they seemed to have run into a road block. Zerrudo did manage a goal at the 62nd minute, but it was called offside.

Socceroo, however, found their equalizer at the 69th minute on a marvelous Jeong Woo Lee finish.

Pachanga’s play dropped in the last 20-25 minutes and it looked they had settled for a draw, but the entrance of Anto Gonzales injected some life into the midfield, though to their chagrin, Socceroo dominated possession in the last 10 minutes of the game.

“We’re happy with the result but we could have won that game,” said Socceroo coach Cleng Cacacho.

“Advantage on the penalty, never in my life,” said coach Rodrigo Davalos, reacting to a call in added time. The referee had given the ball to the Pachanga keeper after showing a yellow to a Pachanga defender inside the box.

Both coaches said they are excited for the UFL transfer window but are keeping everything under wraps until they are ready for their announcements. The UFL transfer window opens tomorrow, March 1, and will remain open until the end of March. News of some transfers have already begun, with the biggest news so far being Ceres-La Salle FC welcoming Patrick Reichelt and Carlie de Murga.

For his part, Pachanga coach Noel Marcaida said that although they were unsuccessful in getting the the three points and the win, they would just get ready for their next game. Pachanga has 16 days before their next outing. - AMD, GMA News