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"They offered me the job, but they only gave me part of the contract," said former Vietnam coach Alfred Riedl of his talks with the Indonesian national team.

PSSI Extends Job Offer to Riedl
With 2011 Asian Cup qualifying behind it and 2014 World Cup qualifying ahead of it, the Indonesian national team faces a brief but crucial period of self-evaluation.

Its 1-0 loss at Australia on Wednesday brought to a close an unsuccessful qualifying campaign that saw Indonesia miss the continental championship for the first time since 1992. It also brought down the curtain on Benny Dollo’s second spell in charge of the team.

As part of the rebuilding needed to arrest the slide in the national team’s fortunes, the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) on Thursday announced it had appointed former Vietnam and Laos coach Alfred Riedl as the new senior and Under-23 national team coach.

“Riedl will be the head coach for both the Under-23 and senior teams starting this month. I don’t think it will be a problem as we will send mostly Under-23 players for international events this year, including the [2014] World Cup and [2012] Olympic qualifiers,” PSSI secretary general Nugraha Besoes said.

“We have to send more youngsters to international tournaments as we will never perform well without proper regeneration.”

However, Riedl said he had not completed any deal with the PSSI.

“[The PSSI] offered me the job, but they only gave me part of the contract. They didn’t give me the full draft, and I haven’t received any more information from them,” the 60-year-old Austrian said in a phone interview with the Jakarta Globe on Thursday.

“It was only the part about the salary and bonus payments, nothing else. If this is going to be a two-year contract, it should be a little more concrete.”

Nugraha cited Riedl’s coaching skill and familiarity with Southeast Asia as the main reason behind the PSSI’s move.

Riedl had three spells in charge of Vietnam (1998-2001, 2003-04, 2005-07) and laid the groundwork for the country to emerge as the rising force in Southeast Asian football. His work bore fruit in December 2008 as Vietnam won its first AFF Suzuki Cup title, overcoming traditional powers Singapore and Thailand en route to the crown.

He also led the Laos U-23 team to a bronze medal in the 2009 Southeast Asian Games, its first SEA Games football medal. The run included the first victory over an Indonesian team in Laos’ history, a 2-0 group stage win.

While details were still scarce, Reidl said he was eager to make the move.

“I would love to come to Indonesia. I have a lot of experience in Southeast Asia and was very successful with Vietnam and Laos. It could be a fruitful partnership with Indonesia,” he said.

The PSSI cannot afford to dawdle, though, as Riedl said he was also in talks with Laos about an extension of his contract, which expired on Jan. 31.

“I still have no firm offer from Laos or Indonesia. I’ve been talking with the Laos FA and the Indonesian FA, but right now the Laos FA is doing more talking,” he said.

Another part of the PSSI’s ongoing shuffle was revealed on Thursday. It claimed the Netherlands Football Association (KNVB) nominated Ruud Krol to be Indonesia’s coach.

Last month, the PSSI approached the KNVB and asked for help in finding a new coach and technical director for the national team.

“The KNVB answered our call for help and nominated Ruud Krol as coach, but we want him to be the technical director. We’ll ask the KNVB to confirm if they agree to Krol’s appointment as technical director,” he said.

Krol, 61, made 83 appearances as a defender for the Dutch national team from 1969 to 1983. He had 339 appearances in 12 seasons with Ajax before finishing his playing career with Napoli and Cannes.

Having previously managed in Belgium, Switzerland, Egypt and France, he is currently the manager of South African side Orlando Pirates.

To give the national team more run-outs, the PSSI announced it would host two international tournaments. The Anniversary Cup will take place on April 2-7 as part of the PSSI’s anniversary celebration, and the Independence Cup will return in August. Nugraha said three teams were invited to each event but gave no further details.

Indonesia begins 2012 Olympic Games qualifying on Sept. 25-30, with 2014 World Cup qualifying beginning in October. Football

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/sports/pssi-extends-job-offer-to-riedl/362013

VIENTIANE - Isa Halim lost his No 4 shirt - and his shorts - after the bronze medal play-off against SEA Games hosts Laos at the Chao Anouvong Stadium Thursday.

Standing on the track adjacent to the pitch clad only in his red tights, Isa drew a lot of attention from bystanders after the Singapore team were mobbed by locals who wanted a piece of the men who had downed Laos 3-1 to take the bronze.

And how sweet victory was for the youngest team in the competition, with an average age of just 19.8 years.

Few in Singapore had confidence in the Republic's under-23 football team here.

Indeed, the sentiment was that this young squad would not even make it out of the group stages of the competition.

But Terry Pathmanathan's charges sealed the bronze with goals from Khairul Nizam (23rd minute), Fazli Ayob (53rd) and Fadhil Noh (87th).

"I think this is a very big success and I'm very proud of the players," said Pathmanathan, just before he was doused with ice water and tossed into the air by his jubilant charges.

"Many people wrote them off but they've done well, extremely well as a matter of fact.

"There was no sign of nerves from these boys and this bronze medal will inspire them to greater heights in football, but the challenge is to keep them together," he added.

A majority of this SEA Games squad will play for the Young Lions in the S-League next year, but with school commitments and National Service on the horizon, it will be a challenge for the Football Association of Singapore to keep the team together for the next two SEA Games.

But, for team captain Isa, the SEA Games road has come to an end.

Still clad only in his tights, he said: "I feel proud leading these young boys. They showed that they have a bright future ahead of them, and this bronze medal is just a stepping stone for them."

Channelnewsasia.com

Malaysia were crowned SEA Games champions in the men?s football final last night after a lucky 1-0 victory over Vietnam to win the gold medal at the National Stadium.
The teams fought hard through both halves but the score remained 0-0 until Vo Hoang Quang of Vietnam accidentally rebounded a defensive shot to score an own goal and clinch the victory for Malaysia in the final minutes of standard time.

Vietnam came close to drawing level in injury time, but Malaysia held them off to take the coveted title in a gripping close to the tournament that saw Malaysian fans erupt in celebration, while the legions of Vietnamese supporters who travelled to Vientiane for the occasion had to settle for silver. ?We deserve to be the champions, even though in the first half the Vietnamese team played better,? said Malaysian Team Coach K.Raja Gobal.




He said the Malaysian side benefited from breaks in the fast paced game after the Vietnamese goal keeper was injured, and play had to be halted several times during the course of the match.
?All of my players did well, especially Kandasamy Gurusamy Govanda, our midfielder who is just 20 years old,? he said, adding that Malaysia were the better team in the second half.

President of the Vietnamese Football Federation Nquyen Troag Thy said his team had played well and hard, and praised the spirit of the Vietnamese players during the game. ?We were unlucky during this match, we attacked many times against Malaysia,? he said.

On the same day at Chao Anouvong stadium, Singapore beat Laos 3-1to win the bronze medal. Muhammad Khairul Nizam Bin scored Singapore?s first goal 22 minutes into the game, the remainder of the first half yielding no further score despite the attempts of both teams, the Lao side backed by their faithful, flag waving football army marching to the sound of dozens of drums.

Singapore?s Muhammed Fazli Bin Ayob scored the second goal of the match 6 minutes into the second half, spurring the Lao players into a barrage of attacks, none of which could break through the Singapore defence.

Muhammad Fadhil Bin Noh sealed the deal for Singapore with a third goal in the 86th minute, but Laos kept fighting and star striker Lamnao Singto succeeded in scoring Laos? only goal 2 minutes later. Injury time produced no further goals for Laos, and the players and fans had to settle for fourth place at the end of a campaign that gripped the nation and saw Laos reach further than ever before in a SEA Games football tournament.

Lao Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh attended both the playoff between Laos and Singapore and the final at the National Stadium to watch the action and preside over the medal ceremonies.

Although Laos ' loss to Malaysia on Monday in the semifinals of the SEA Games tournament broke the hearts of local supporters, most are still eager to see the third-place playoff between Laos and Singapore today.

Spot checks by the Vientiane Times found that most supporters were on the hunt for tickets to see the fight for a bronze medal, slated for 3pm at the Chao Anouvong Stadium.

Local businessman Mr Bounsavath said he didn't make it to the Laos-Malaysia game but was definitely going to watch the final appearance of Laos when they face Singapore for the second time in the tournament.

“We don't care about the result of the final to be played at the National Stadium, we just want to show our support for Laos and spur them on in their bronze medal attempt. Don't worry, Lao fans will be by their side whether they win or lose.”

That opinion was typical of the sentiments of local fans who desperately want the Lao squad to put on a good performance and do their best to get a medal from the tournament.

Lao Men's Football Team Manager Viphet Sihachackr echoed these feelings on Tuesday.

“Now we are playing in our fifth match of the tournament. We had hoped this would be the gold medal match, but we're playing for the bronze medal instead.”

“I'd like to thank all Lao fans for buying tickets and cheering us on so enthusiastically. I'm confident the crowd today will be every bit as supportive as at previous matches,” he said.

Mr Viphet said it would be good if entry to the match were free, but the SEA Games Organising Committee said the normal ticket price would stand and that rule had to be respected.

The Lao line-up will be similar to previous matches with the exception of defender Keovixian Keovilay who has picked up an injury.

“Our match with Singapore today won't be like last time when we were both looking at a place in the semi-final. This will be a more interesting game, like our match with Indonesia ,” Mr Viphet said.

That game really impressed him, he said, and he hoped today's match would be in the same league. Most of the players were at the same standard and played a similar game, which made for entertaining and competitive football.

In today's matches Laos will meet Singapore at the Chao Anouvong Stadium at 3pm and Malaysia will face Vietnam in the tournament final at the National Stadium at 5pm.

By Souknilundon Southivongnorath

Vientianetimes

Standing Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad believes that Laos should not feel too bad about not making the final of men's football after losing to Malaysia last night as making the semi-finals was already a historic achievement. "The Laos footballers should be praised for reaching the semi-final round for the first time in a SEA Games competition," said Somsavat. "I can see that they have improved because of hard training and tried their best as the hosts of this event.

"But the fans should continue to encourage Laos athletes in the remaining days of the competition to cheer the athletes to win for their country."

Laos had created history this year when they made the semi-finals of men's football by beating Indonesia and also holding Singapore and Myanmar in the group stage. But they lost out of a place in the final in the 25th edition of the SEA Games after losing to Malaysia 3-1 last night at the Main Stadium.

Laos continued improvement in football was due to their team's long-term attachment with Vietnam club Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) for over a year. "Our athletes have done well in the games, winning many gold, silver and bronze medals so far," added Somsavat.

"Laos have never won medals like this before, but this time we are the hosts and our athletes have trained hard for victory.

"The current games fever prove that the people are keen to cheer local athletes in all popular sports, so this makes me believe that Laos sports will continue to improve because of the increased interest of our people."

By: WSL MSC Sdn. Bhd. (Malaysia) - ICT Committee

SEAG

The tag minnows is no longer applicable to Laos football - men or women. Since making their appearance at the 1995 SEA Games in Thailand, the Laotian national side has been a constant feature of the biennial Asean Football Championships. Following their win over Brunei and the Philippines in 1995, they followed it up with a victory over Malaysia in the Jakarta SEA Games two years later. Enroute to a place in the semi-finals this year, Laos had also drawn against Myanmar (1-1) and Singapore (0-0) while beaten Indonesia 2-0.

And tomorrow, they will be looking to scalp the Malaysians for the second time in 12 years to win a place in the final. LFF president Phouvanh Vongsouthi said that the progress made by the national side or in this case the national Under-23 squad was due to a revamp in the programme.

"We are changing the way we look at our development programmes where we have come to rely more on the close relationships we have with several countries in the region to develop our football," said Phouvanh.

"For the current SEA Games, we sent our U23 team for an attachment to Vietnam with club Hoang Anh Gia Lai where for more than a year, all their expenses in terms of training, lodging and whatever were all taken care of by the Vietnam club.

"I believe for us, it is a better way of developing our football since Laos is a small country and we firmly believe in the ideals of the ASEAN brotherhood."

Domestic competitions are also active with over 60 clubs competing at various levels even though it is mostly restricted to the amateur levels with the top teams from the government ministries or public services. As the Laos men’s football chart further into the unknown, their women’s team will be up against Vietnam in a crucial match later today to see if they can win a place in the final against Thailand on December 16.

The Laotian girls began their campaign in women’s football this year with a 1-1 draw against Myanmar, a 4-1 loss to defending champions Thailand and then a 5-0 win over Malaysia.

Source: SEAG

The venue and time for the semi-final matches of men's football have been changed. This follows the team managers' meeting with the four teams - Vietnam and Malaysia (from Group A) as well as Laos and Singapore (from Group B) - which was held this morning at the Laos Football Federation headquarters this morning.

"The change is deemed to be necessary to accomodate TV requirements and that of the fans," said Phouvanh Vongsouthi, the president of the LFF.

The Vietnam-Singapore match will be played at the Chao Anouvong Stadium, Vientiane Capital. with kick-off at 18:00 hrs while the Laos-Malaysia clash will be held at the Main Stadium of the National Sports Complex, kick-off at 19:00hrs.

Laos and Singapore made it to the semi-finals of the men’s football event when they battled to a scoreless draw in their final Group B match. With the score tied all event at the end of a pulsating encounter, Laos won the group with five points from a win and two drawn matches - the same with Singapore. But the hosts emerged at the top of the standings on a better one goal difference as compared to the Young Lions. In the match that was played at the Main Stadium, the sell-out crowd had expected Laos to put up a grand show and beat Singapore following their 2-0 win over Indonesia in their last match. But considering what was at stake where a defeat might have just allowed Myanmar - who beat Indonesia 3-1 earlier - to sneak in, both teams were not risking too much. Chances were far and in between as the action were restricted to the middle of the park as both teams let the clock trickled down to the final whistle for their safe passage into the next round.

In the meantime, it was a futile victory for Myanmar when they beat Indonesia 3-1 in an earlier Group B match. The game began on an earnest note and in the sixth minute, Myanmar got their first goal of the game off a penalty from Tun Tun Win who sent Indonesian keeper Frenky Irawan the wrong way. Pai Soe got a chance in the eighth minute to add to the tally but he totally ballooned his effort while five minutes later, captain Khin Maung Lwin’s effort came off from the underside of the crossbar.

Laos and Singapore made it to the semi-finals of the men’s football event when they battled to a scoreless draw in their final Group B match. With the score tied all event at the end of a pulsating encounter, Laos won the group with five points from a win and two drawn matches - the same with Singapore. But the hosts emerged at the top of the standings on a better one goal difference as compared to the Young Lions. In the match that was played at the Main Stadium, the sell-out crowd had expected Laos to put up a grand show and beat Singapore following their 2-0 win over Indonesia in their last match. But considering what was at stake where a defeat might have just allowed Myanmar - who beat Indonesia 3-1 earlier - to sneak in, both teams were not risking too much. Chances were far and in between as the action were restricted to the middle of the park as both teams let the clock trickled down to the final whistle for their safe passage into the next round.

In the meantime, it was a futile victory for Myanmar when they beat Indonesia 3-1 in an earlier Group B match. The game began on an earnest note and in the sixth minute, Myanmar got their first goal of the game off a penalty from Tun Tun Win who sent Indonesian keeper Frenky Irawan the wrong way. Pai Soe got a chance in the eighth minute to add to the tally but he totally ballooned his effort while five minutes later, captain Khin Maung Lwin’s effort came off from the underside of the crossbar.


SEAG

A last-minute penalty denied defending champions Thailand the full points when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Vietnam in the second match of Group A of the men’s football event at the Main Stadium of the National Sports Complex. In front of a sell-out crowd dominated by a sea of boisterous Vietnames fans in red, both Thailand and Vietnam displayed fast, attacking football from the very first whistle. At times, their enthusiasm borders on the physical which referee Pratap Singh from India did not hesitate to stem out with several yellow cards in the first half alone.

It was Thailand who got the first look at goal in the fourth minute when Arthit Sunthorphit blasted in from the right only to miss the far post. Six minutes later, a header from lanky captain Kiatprawut Sawaeo went inches over the cross bar.

It was to be the two central defenders for Thailand - Kiatprawut and Suttinun Chekhov - who made the difference as they easily cut off the darting runs from Vietnam striker Hoang Dinh Tung. The score at the break was 0-0.

It was Vietnam who started off stronger into the second half with the hard working captain Pham Thanh Luong pulling the action from the centre of the park. In the 64th minute, Thanh Luong’s incisive pass was wasted by Dinh Tung, who ballooned his effort with only Thai keeper Kawin Thamsatchanan to beat. Thailand then replied with an effort from Khapfa Boonmatoon in the 61st minute but his shot from the edge of the Vietnam box was blocked by a recovering defender.

And while Vietnam’s attempt from a free kick came off the wall, it was Thailand who silenced the crowd in the 72nd minute when striker Kirati Keawsombut pounced on a mistake from Vietnam keeper Bui Tan Truong to take the lead.

But as Thailand wound down for what they thought would be their first three points of the competition, Vietnam’s win of a penalty right at the end of the game turned the game around.

Thai defender Sutjarit Jantakol was faulted for bringing down Dinh Tung inside the box and the latter did not hesitate from the spot as he sent Kawin the wrong way for Vietnam’s first point in the group.

The hugely anticipated football match between Thailand and Vietnam will feature on the first day of the 25th SEA Games in Vientiane tomorrow. Kick-starting the event will be a match between Malaysia and Timor Leste, before the competition’s heavyweights take to the field. Vietnamese footballers were the first arrivals of the thousands athletes participating in the games, touching down before the football teams from Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. Vietnamese Coach Henrique Calisto said Saturday’s match with Thailand will be the biggest for his team, given the strength of their opponents.

“Just win, just lose or just draw, we still don’t know, but we will do our best in the match,” said the Portuguese coach. “The last time we met them recently ended in a draw, so we don’t know what will happen on Wednesday.” While the Vietnamese team is hopeful of matching up to Thailand, the Thai team believe they can show their supremacy in the first match. Thai Coach Stephen Darby said on Sunday his team was preparing perfectly and was confident of winning the match.

“We believe our players can get a result on Wednesday, and we’d like to be playing again on the final day of the SEA Games.”

The men’s football teams are divided into two groups. Group A comprises Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Timor Leste and Cambodia, while Group B consists of Laos, Myanmar, Singapore and Indonesia.

The schedule of Women football match of the 25th SEA Games in Laos is as follow:

2/12/2009 Arrival of all football teams
3/12/2009 Meeting of all team managers
4/12/2009 Malaysia vs Thailand (13:30) @ National University of Laos
Laos vs Myanmar (14:45) @ National University of Laos
6/12/2009 Thailand vs Myanmar (13:30) National University of Laos
Malaysia vs Vietnam (14:45) National University of Laos
8/12/2009 Myanmar vs Vietnam (13:30) National University of Laos
Laos vs Thailand (14:45) National University of Laos
11/12/2009 Laos vs Malaysia (13:30) National University of Laos
Thailand vs Vietnam (14:45) National University of Laos
13/12/2009 Laos vs Vietnam (15:40) Chaoanu stadium
Malaysia vs Myanmar (18:00) Chaoanu Stadium
16/12/2009 Final (16:00) Chaoanou stadium

Lao U-23 Football Team Manager Viphet Sihachackr said yesterday that the team's experience in previous matches will mean they perform at their best in December.

“The test matches might have made people unhappy with our performance, because they think our team is hopeless and has lost to many other teams on previous occasions, but in fact the fans don't understand that we just used those games as practice for the real event in December,” he said.

Mr Viphet said his team didn't need to win those matches, rather they needed to get much more experience, so that after each match coach and team assistant could analyse the game and suggest how the footballers could improve their performance.

Since the tournament in Cambodia in early November, many Lao football fans have complained about the team not playing well enough.

Their complaints were heightened at the most recent match at Chao Anouvong on Tuesday when the Lao team lost 3-1 to Hoang Anh Gia Lia of Vietnam .

“Hoang Anh Gia Lia is an official sponsor of the 25th SEA Games, so they just wanted to send their football team to practice with our team.

“We learnt many things from them because they had many good players,” Mr Viphet said.

Mr Viphet said the team has been playing very well recently and is ready for their first SEA Games match on December 5 against Myanmar , the runner up at the 24th SEA Games in Thailand .

On December 7 the Lao team will face Indonesia and on December 10 they will take on Singapore in the quarterfinal of the SEA Games.

Mr Viphet said Myanmar is a strong contender but the Lao footballers would try their best to win.

“We will be the winner of the match.

“We know Myanmar is strong but because we are the host country we want to stay in the competition as long as possible,” he said.

Mr Viphet said he trusted the ability of his players after they had gained experience locally and abroad.

“We have spoken with other coaches about our athletes, who said they are improving even though they haven't had much time to practice. The Austrian coach said if the Lao team had more time, they would be really good,” he said.

The men's football teams will be divided into two groups. Laos will be in Group B along with Myanmar , Singapore and Indonesia , while in Group A Thailand will play against Vietnam , Malaysia , Timor Leste and Cambodia .

The women's teams will play in only one group, which comprises Malaysia , Thailand , Myanmar , Vietnam and Laos .

By Souknilundon Southivongnorath
Vientianetimes

Laos U23 team had their warm up match with HAGL club from Vietnam in preparation for the 25th SEA Games in Chao Anou football stadium, Vientiane.

In the first match which kicked off on Sunday 22nd November, Laos team trounced Vietnam 4:0. However, the match on 24th November, Vietnam hit back and won Laos with the score 3:1.

This will be the final warm up match for Laos U23 team.

In 25th SEA Games, Laos will first meet Myanmar on December 5th.

The opening match in Group B football of the 25th SEA Games in Laos will be played on 5 December considering that they are only four teams in the group as against five teams in Group A.

The first match in Group B at the National Stadium will be Singapore taking on Indonesia while hosts Laos will play Myanmar, who were the silver medallist two years ago in Thailand.


GROUPINGS

Group A: Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Timor Leste, Cambodia

Group B: Laos, Myanmar, Singapore, Indonesia


FIXTURES

2 Dec (Main Stadium): Malaysia vs Timor Leste (1500hrs)/ Thailand vs Vietnam (1745hrs)

4 Dec (Chao Anu Vong Stadium): Thailand vs Cambodia 1500hrs)/ Vietnam vs Timor Leste (1745hrs)

5 Dec (Main Stadium): Singapore vs Indonesia (1500hrs)/ Laos vs Myanmar (1745hrs)

6 Dec (Main Stadium): Vietnam vs Malaysia (1500hrs)/ Timor Leste vs Cambodia (1745hrs)

7 Dec (Chao Anu Vong Stadium): Myanmar vs Singapore (1500hrs)/ Indonesia vs Laos (1745hrs)

8 Dec (Chao Anu Vong Stadium): Timor Leste vs Thailand (1500hrs)/ Cambodia vs Malaysia (1745hrs)

9 Dec: Opening Ceremony

10 Dec (Chao Anu Vong Stadium): Myanmar vs Indonesia (1500hrs)/ Laos vs Singapore (1745hrs)

11 Dec (Chao Anu Vong Stadium): Cambodia vs Vietnam (1500hrs)/ Malaysia vs Thailand (1500hrs)

14 Dec (Chao Anu Vong Stadium): Semi-finals

17 Dec: Third/ Fourth Placing (1500hrs at Chao Anu Vong Stadium)/ FINAL (1700hrs at Main Stadium)

The Lao Women's Football Federation will organise a final test event for its players on November 18-19 before the SEA Games get underway in December.

After conceding several goals at the International Women's Football Tournament held in Quang Ninh , Vietnam , last month, the team will play against a club from Chonbury province, Thailand , as a final test before the games.

Assistant coach Mr Viengsavanh Sengchanh accepted yesterday that his team was not as strong compared with the Thai and Vietnamese teams because they didn't practise before the tournament.

“We had left early hoping to practise in Vietnam for 10 days, but unfortunately there was a big storm in Vietnam then so for those 10 days we just ate and slept. We returned home for five days but the tournament organisers invited us to participate in the event so we decided to go ahead even though the players weren't fit,” he said.

After coming back from the tournament, the team starting practising hard by using the experience of the loss, and now they are getting better and are ready to take on the Thai team this month.

The squad has been training since April this year, and the federation invited countries in the region to a tournament in Champassak province. The Lao women were runners-up in the event.

“We have 25 players who are strong and ready to play in the SEA Games; I think they will be able to hold their heads high next month,” Mr Viengsavanh said.

The test event on November 18-19 will be another trial run for the Chao Anouvong and Dongdok stadiums to see if they are ready for the SEA Games.

“Fans can go to cheer the team for free during the competition on both days,” he said.

Mr Viengsavanh also explained that after the match the federation will continue with training and will select the final 20 players for the SEA Games.

“We promise we'll get one of the three medals for Laos ,” he said.

The women's football matches will be played in a group comprising Malaysia , Thailand , Myanmar , Vietnam and Laos .

“ Vietnam has the strongest team but we are trying our best,” Mr Viengsavanh said.

By Souknilundon Southivongnorath
Vientianetimes

Laos captain Kitsada was named the Most Valuable Player in the BIDC Cup 2009 in Phnom Phen, Cambodia. The final results of the BIDC Cup is as follow:

The winner: Cambodia U-23
Second: Hoang Anh Gia Lai, Vietnam
Third: Vissai Ninh Binh
Fouth: Laos U-23

Cambodia’s Samrith Seiha was voted the tournament’s Best Goalkeeper, and Evaldo Goncaves of HAGL collected the Top Scorer award.

Photo: roubroum.blogspot.com

Bangladesh drew 3-3 with Laos to finish fourth. Laos are bottom with one point, two behind fifth-placed Macau.

Korea Republic beat Thailand 2-1 on Wednesday as both teams qualified from Group E for the AFC U-19 Championship 2010 finals.

Vietnam put themselves in a strong position to claim the best third-placed berth in the finals from East Asia by beating Macau 3-0.

Korea Republic, Thailand and Vietnam all finished on 12 points with the Koreans topping the group on goal difference.

Thailand and Vietnam had exactly the same goals for and against of 9-2. However, the Thais claimed second place because of their 1-0 victory the Vietnamese on Sunday.

Korea Republic’s victory at the Royal Thai Army Stadium came courtesy of an 88th-minute Seo Hong-min goal. Earlier, the Thais went into half-time with a 1-0 lead after Chakrit Ravanprakon scored in the 21st minute.

Source: AFC

The Cambodian U-23s beat their Laos counterparts 2-1 in their BIDC Cup match in Phnom Penh and go through to the two-team final to be played on Saturday with their second win of the competition. Goals from Keo Sokngorn and Nov Soseila sealed the result. It was a very tough game as Laos played very well in the 2nd half after Lamnao Singto got a red card, and the team being reduced to 10 men.

In another match, HAGL won Vissai Ninh Binh 3:0.

Laos will meet HAGL on 11 November 20093.

Table Standing is as follow:
1. Cambodia : 6 points (+2)
2. Hoang Anh Gia Lai : 3 points (+2)
3. Laos : 1 point (-1)
4. Vissai Ninh Binh : 1 point (-3)


Source: http://www.andybrouwer.co.uk/blog/

(KPL) The football team of the armed force of Champassak province of Laos has won the 2009 Number One Cup after defeating Vietnam ?s Binh Phuoc military team 2-1 on Nov. 5.

According to VNA, the Number One Cup is an international football tournament, for the armed forces in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. This year's event was held on Oct. 27-Nov. 5 with the participation of seven teams from Laos's Champassak and Savannakhet provinces, Cambodia's Kompong Thom and Stungtreng province, and Vietnam's Binh Phuoc province.The police team from Binh Phuoc province and Laos's Savannakhet team shared the third prize.

Player Phanthavong of Champassak who scored 10 goals during the tournament was presented the Best Scorer title and Hoang Dinh Ngoc of Binh Phuoc military team got the ?Best Goal Keeper.

On this occasion, the tournament's organising board presented six tonnes of rice to flood victims in Kompong Thom and Stungtreng provinces.

SEA Games: A Preview - Both Groups Present Challenges
There is no easy ride for anyone in the nine-nation tournament...

Whichever way it went, there are no longer easy grouping following the official draw announcement of the men’s football of the 25th SEA Games in Laos this morning.

Eight-times champions Thailand are in Group A alongside Vietnam, Malaysia, Timor Leste and Cambodia.In Group B are hosts Laos, Myanmar, Singapore and Indonesia.

Brunei have been banned by FIFA while the Philippines are not putting up either men‘s or women‘s team at this year‘s SEA Games.

Indonesian team manager Demis Djamaoeddin said that there are no longer easy draw at the SEA Games with all the teams taking part well prepared.

“Unlike in the past, there are no teams which you can consider as minnows,” said Demis from Palembang.

“All the teams taking part take the championship seriously and they prepare their teams for months. We are no different.

“For us, it makes no different being in either group. They are all tough. We can only prepare our team as well as possible. The rest will be decided on the day.”

Singapore have been building up steadily towards the SEA Games where their recent 6-0 win over their counterparts from Cambodia proved that their formula in having their team - the Young Lions - have regular competition in the S-League is paying off.

They are currently playing in the VFF-Smartdoor Championship in Hanoi where they had conceded a 1-0 loss to the Vietnam U23 side in their opening match.The Young Lions then held the Thai U23 side to a 1-1 draw in their second match of the meet and will wrap up the competition by taking on China U23.

The Indonesians will be relying on the Uruguayan touch to carry the team through with the enlistment of Alberto Dica while for Laos, their win of the pre-SEA Games meet despite playing against U19 sides, will be an added incentive.

Add that to the expected home crowd, then Laos could just spring a surprise - or two.

Myanmar, through their recent formation of the Myanmar national league, have allowed their U23 players more playing time and with the expected four-nation tournament later this month, they will not be short of match experience.

At the very least, Myanmar will be looking at defending the silver they win two years ago in Thailand.

With the Thais again the firm favourites to defend their crown, Vietnam will be hoping that their win of the AFF Suzuki Cup last year will give them the confidence for the task ahead.

And certainly, the Vietnam U23 side seems to be oozing with confidence where this week, they picked up the VFF-Smartdoor Cup in Hanoi after beating Singapore U23 (1-0) and then China U23 (3-1).

They will play their final round robin match against Thailand U23 with the results being inconsequential to the end result.Malaysia as always remain the dark horse with head coach K. Rajagobal saying that they will be taking it one game at a time.

“It is a tough draw, but then there’s no way we can avoid it,” added Rajagobal.

“We will look at who we will play against first and take it from there.”

Cambodia will be playing in a four-team meet in Phnom Penh this week while for Timor Leste, they are certainly capable of delivering the goods.

Timor recently qualified for the final round of the AFC U16 championships after holding China to a draw and then beating Singapore in their qualifying matches.

At the AFF Under-19 championship in Ho Chi Minh City, they played well as a unit and was just unfortunate not to make the semi-finals.

“We are improving as a whole but it is still a step by step process,” said Timor Leste president Francisco Kalbuadi.

Source: http://goal.com/