Philippine Azkals Loses To Indonesia In Suzuki Cup 2010: Indonesia Will Face Malaysia In The Finals

Our beloved Philippine Azkals was beaten by Indonesia in the semi-finals, both in legs 1 and 2 which happened last December 16 and 19 2010 in Indonesia. The Philippine Azkals say goodbye to the AFF Suzuki Finals 2010. But I believe, just like all the optimistic Filipinos out there that this is just the beginning of something great. This is not a total failure. With Phil and James Younghusband staying healthy, and Anton Del Rosario giving his all and Etheridge as our Goalee we can definitely be anywhere in the world of football. The Indonesians will go against Malaysia in the Finals of the Suzuki Cup.

The AFF Suzuki Cup in the Asia, is the counterpart of FIFA in Europe. All those who love football tune in to watch Suzuki Cup. This is important for the exposure of Philippine Football to the world. This sport is just right for Filipinos because of our height and agility. I believe that we can produce great football players who can play internationally. The Philippines' Vice-president Jejomar Binay loves watching football and he can definitely support the sport. Hopefully he will.

I would like to give the names of the members of the Philippine Azkals. Here are their names and jersey numbers. Midfielders - #17 Jason De Jong, #7 James Younghusband, #10 Phil Younghusband, #27 Ray Jonsson and #6 Roel Gener, Goalee #1 Niel Etheridge, Defenders - #2 Rob Gier, #11 Aly Borromeo and #4 Anton del Rosario, Forwards - #18 Chris Greatwich and #23 Ian Araneta. Thank you such for representing the Philippines.

Both of the legs were hotly contested ones. In the second leg the score was 1-0 in favor of Indonesia. Indonesia's previous games were all blowouts but the Azkals defended them very well. So much so, Yellow Cards were given many times in the game. There was also an additional 4 minutes stoppage time because of some heated altercations between the teams.

On the part of Indonesia, it was Gonzales who crashed the defense of the Azkals. Christian "El Loco" Gonzales kicked the butts of the Filipinos in Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta. He was the lone person who scored a left kick for Indonesia. For a 1-0 victory in front of 80,000 Indonesians.


What's important is that the Azkals made a valiant effort against the Indonesians. They didn't back down from the challenge that's why they have won the hearts of the Filipinos and all other football lovers.

Here's the highlights of the game.