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The AFC.comGroup A: Hong Kong 0-2 IndonesiaWednesday, May 2, 2018Bangkok: Indonesia made an AFC Women’s Futsal Championship debut to remember, putting themselves in pole position to reach the quarter-finals with a 2-0 win over Hong Kong on Wednesday.
Second-half goals from Febriana and Fitri made all the difference for the Southeast Asians, who earned all three points with a performance that showed they well and truly belong on the Asian stage.
In a hotly-contested opening match, early goal scoring opportunities proved hard to come by as both teams took their tentative first steps in the year’s biggest tournament.
Hong Kong enjoyed a slight edge in terms of early possession, but Indonesia – marshalled confidently by skipper Novita – defended strongly to produce a first half arm wrestle
The contest burst into life four minutes before half time, when Hong Kong’s dual international Cheung Wai Ki flashed a low right-footed effort inches wide of the left hand upright.
Indonesia’s Fitri fired a powerful strike high and wide at the opposite end seconds later, but neither side found the guile required to unlock their opponent’s defence, and they remained deadlocked at half-time.
Novita continued to play a pivotal role after half-time, setting Rani up for a shot on goal with nine minutes remaining, while Suciana narrowly missed from a tight angle a minute later as Indonesia began to look the team most likely to break the deadlock.
Their pressure finally paid dividends with just over seven minutes remaining when the Indonesians broke the deadlock through Febriana, who prodded the ball home from close range after being expertly set up by Suciana
They doubled their lead, and sealed their win, with just under three minutes remaining, when Rani teed up Fitri, who thumped the ball in with her left foot, and almost added a third in the dying seconds when Anggi hit the woodwork with a header.
Indonesia will look to continue their dream start to the tournament against hosts and group favourites Thailand at Bangkok Arena on Friday, while Hong Kong will look to get their campaign back on track against Macau on the same day.
Kensuke Takahashi: Indonesia Assistant Coach“I’m very satisfied with the result. We prepared for two weeks for this game, and I’m really happy with the result. This is just half of what I have planned for the team (at this tournament) and I’m pretty sure that we can be even stronger going forward.”
Ho Wing Kam: Hong Kong Head Coach“Maybe the players were a bit nervous today. We’ll focus on the next match against Macau and hopefully get three points. Our performance was good today and we didn’t lose our confidence in the match. Why couldn’t we create a goal? Some players were a bit worried that if we missed a chance Indonesia would go the other way and score. Also Cheung Wai Ki had a bit of an injury which hurt us today.”
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The AFC.comGroup B: Vietnam 1-0 Chinese TaipeiWednesday, May 2, 2018Bangkok: Nguyen Thi Thanh's second half effort ensured Vietnam an opening day win in the AFC Women's Futsal Championship as they beat Chinese Taipei 1-0 at the Bangkok Arena on Wednesday.
Vietnam's Thi Thanh came close to opening the scoring from close range off a free-kick in the first minute but Chinese Taipei 'keeper Li I-chieh did well to block the attempt.
Chinese Taipei, however, were unfazed by their opponents' early aggression, as they worked hard to keep Vietnam in their own half.
Truong Quoc Tuan's charges were handed multiple golden opportunities when Chinese Taipei committed their sixth and seventh fouls, but Li rose to the occasion to maintain the goalless scoreline.
Vietnam returned from the break more eager to break the deadlock and played with higher intensity, which left Chinese Taipei with little freedom and space to move around the court.
In the 29th minute, Chinese Taipei picked up their fourth foul of the second half, and had to resort to a less aggressive approach which Vietnam immediately took advantage of.
Nguyen Thi Chau outmuscled the Chinese Taipei defender, before Thi Thanh latched onto the loose ball and found the back of the net to take the lead.
A few minutes later, Vietnam came close to doubling their lead when Bui Thi Trang received the ball in the box before passing it to Bien Thi Hang to finish, but Li denied the attempt with an impressive save.
Chinese Taipei continued their pursuit for an equaliser and even opted for power play in the last few minutes, but Vietnam were quick to react and held on to keep the lead and the three points.
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The AFC.comGroup A: Thailand 15-0 MacauWednesday, May 2, 2018Bangkok: Hosts Thailand gave Macau a crash course in the highest level of Asian futsal, hammering the newcomers 15-0 on Wednesday to announce themselves as contenders for the AFC Women’s Futsal Championship 2018.
Udom Taveesuk’s side scored five times in the first eight minutes, and registered a tournament scoring record in a one-sided affair between two sides at opposite stages of their futsal development.
Sasicha Pohothiwong led the scoring with five goals, while Darika Peanpailun scored three on a night where the goals came thick, fast and almost unrelentingly.
Macau’s resistance lasted just over 60 seconds, with Sasicha giving Thailand a near-instant lead after being set up by Mutita Senkram, before the lethal finisher doubled her tally in the third minute – signalling a long night ahead for the debutants.
Nimrattanasing Jiraprapa hammered home a third two minutes later, and by the time Darika beat goalkeeper Ho Ka I from an acute angle, the hosts had scored their fourth goal in less than six minutes.
With Thailand’s passing game leaving their opponents chasing shadows, Jenjira Bubpha slammed home a fifth in the eight minute, before Darika brought up the half dozen six minutes later, then completed her hat-trick just over four minutes before half time.
Macau’s troubles were summed up when confusion over a kick-in routine saw the ball left alone on the floor, allowing Sasicha to steal the ball unopposed and narrowly miss out on completing her hat-trick.
She wouldn’t have much longer to wait, however, tapping home her third with a minute on the clock, before Mutita added her name to the ever-expanding scoresheet to make it 9-0 at half-time.
A more organised Macau emerged immediately after the break, managing to keep the hosts at bay for an extended period and nearly scoring a goal of their own, only for Suksen Sasiprapha’s save to deny Kuok Ut Meng from close range.
Normal service resumed when Sasicha took Thaland’s tally into double figures in the 30th minute, and her personal tally to five less than a minute later before Pacharaporn Srimuan made it 12-0 with eight minutes remaining.
Orapin Waenngoen scored a lovely 35th minute effort, before Jiraprapa Tupsuri became Thailand’s seventh goal scorer and an own goal took their tally to 15 three minutes later.
Thailand, now top of Group A, will continue their campaign against fellow opening-day winners Indonesia on Friday, while Macau’s attention turns to their meeting with Hong Kong.
Udom Taveesuk: Thailand Head coach“Macau is a developing side and maybe very soon they will improve a lot because they performed well today. Our Thai players followed our tactics and it means we’re confident for the next match. If we can continue to improve we will achieve our target.”
Chiang Ka Chon: Macau Head coach“Today is the first formal match for our team and the players tried very hard and did quite well. In the coming two days we will recover quickly and prepare for the next match. This is the first time for our team to play in the AFC Women’s Futsal Championship, so it took time for the players to adapt to the moment and the atmosphere. You could see in the second half that we did better than in the first half.
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The AFC.comGroup B: Malaysia 7-1 BangladeshWednesday, May 2, 2018Bangkok: Malaysia began their AFC Women's Futsal Championship 2018 campaign with a 7-1 win over Bangladesh on Wednesday.
Malaysia, however, started cautiously as head coach Addie Azwan's players took the opening minutes to gauge their Group B rivals.
Tournament debutants Bangladesh used that to their advantage and found the back of the net three minutes into the game, through Masura Parvin's strike from the second penalty mark, courtesy of Sabina Khatun's kick-in.
A stung Malaysia responded almost immediately as a series of passes from the right led to Hanis tapping in from close range, before Zurain Kamarudin scored in similar fashion just seconds after the restart for them to take the lead.
Bangladesh had a few runs that could have led to a goal, but their lack of competitive experience gave Malaysia enough time to react defensively.
In the 16th minute, Malaysia were awarded a spot-kick from the second penalty mark after Bangladesh committed a sixth foul, but Hanis shot wide.
However, two minutes from the half-time whistle, Malaysia showed their prowess, with Siti Asnidah Zamri, Nur Shazreen Munazli and Siti Nur Atiqah Rashid etching their names on the scoresheet going into the break.
Malaysia's intensity and desire to make a mark in their opening match were evident, and less than two minutes into the second half Atiqah Rashid scored her second to make it 6-1.
Nur Shazreen scored her second of the night in the final seven seconds of the match to give Malaysia an emphatic finish after their early scare.
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Luca Ranocchiari -->
luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com
