NOT AGAIN.
The UST Golden Booters were just a breath away from capturing the Ang Liga Cup, but were bitterly robbed of the plum by San Beda College in the rain-drenched Philsports Football field last Nov. 20.
The Tiger Booters were faced with the same situation as last year’s staging of the tournament— the same weather conditions and the same opponent.
In the 2-0 finals battle, UST failed to unseat San Beda, the defending champions. UST head coach Nonnoy Carpio pointed at the uncooperative weather condition as the culprit.
“The team was not used to playing in the rain. We had a difficult time adjusting, that’s really the cause of our loss,” said Carpio.
The España-based Booters had a couple of chances to convert on offense but the wet field halted the Tigers’ attempts at the goal.
Dan Padernal, the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, struck the first goal for the Bedans in the 16th minute of the first half. Giggs Cariño scored an “accidental” goal in the 65th minute after the ball bounced off a mud-spattered portion of the field, leaving Tiger goalkeeper Kim Versales on the wrong foot.
“Kung hindi lang sana umulan, malaki ang chance namin na makuha ‘yung championship,” said Carpio.
The Aris Caslib-squad of San Beda is truly a powerhouse force with at least seven national team mainstays in its roster. Caslib, who also won Most Outstanding Coach honors, mentors the National Football Team as well.
“Lamang sila in terms of players and experience. Our players are still younger than San Beda in terms of maturity,” Carpio said.
In the ongoing Globe-sponsored Football tournament, however, UST convincingly defeated San Beda, 4-2, just one week before the Ang Liga championships.
Along with San Beda, UST earned an outright ticket in the finals after garnering an impressive 30 points to top the standings. The Tigers carried a nine wins-four losses-three draws card going into the finals.
Ang Liga series, a collegiate tournament of the Philippine Football Federation, saw eight participating schools outplay each other in the double-round format starting July.
