The Philippines yesterday opened an international soccer tournament at the Taipei Municipal Stadium with a 3-1 win against Laos, while Taiwan held a practice session in the morning after their scheduled opponents East Timor had their travel plans disrupted by a volcanic eruption in Indonesia.
Phil Younghusband, Angel Guirado and Kintaro Miyagi scored to put the Philippines three goals ahead, before Sengvilay Chanthasili got a late consolation for Laos.
Taiwanese soccer officials had to reschedule the program for the competition after receiving the news that East Timor would not arrive in time for Thursday’s pre-tournament news conference.
“The travel arrangements for East Timor have been delayed due to closure of airports after the eruption of Mount Agung in Bali. The team will arrive a few days late, as they transferred flights at an airport in Indonesia,” the Chinese Taipei Football Association (CTFA) said in a statement.
The new schedule for the CTFA International Cup sees Laos take on East Timor at 4pm tomorrow at the Taipei Municipal Stadium, before Taiwan host the Philippines at 7pm.
Taiwan’s match against East Timor is now to take place at 7pm on Monday.
The tournament is to finish on Tuesday when the Philippines take on East Timor at 4pm, before the hosts face Laos at 7pm.
The latest addition to the Taiwan squad is Swedish-Taiwanese teenager Karl Josefsson, who has attracted much fan attention alongside English-Taiwanese player Will Donkin, who plays for English Premier League side Crystal Palace, as both youngsters are expected to see plenty of action in the coming days.
At the pre-tournament news conference, Taiwan manager Gary White said the tournament would give him an opportunity to assess the new players to see whether they could perform in international matches against good opponents.
White admitted that there are still some shortcomings with his squad, saying he would focus on improving the defense as well as the attack.
While all the matches have been scheduled for the Taipei Municipal Stadium, some commentators have suggested that some matches are moved to the artificial pitch at Fu Jen Catholic University, as wet weather could cause problems with the grass pitch at the stadium and it might not cope with hosting matches on three consecutive days.
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