Among the two qualifiers that played in the last Group B match, it was Kaya who finished on top at the final whistle against Pachanga Diliman, 3-0, at the penultimate day of the 2015 United Football League (UFL) Cup group stage action, Sunday, May 24 at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
Kaya made their offense click early at the sixth minute when Joshua Beloya was left unmarked on the left wing. The former U23 standout connected to Tishan Hanley, who found the back of the net for the go-ahead goal. Following the goal came another attempt by Louis Clark from way out, but this did not bother Pachanga Diliman’s Steve Yambou. However, at the 10th minute, Clark finally slotted one into the goal off a corner kick to double the lead for the former Cup champions. The leading team kept on piling the pressure, but the shots were either muffed by the defense or the forwards are called offside. Pachanga Diliman had a few chances to score towards the end of the period, but they could not finish. The halftime whistle sounded with the yellow shirts ahead, 2-0.
The second period opened up for both teams with Kaya having better chances on offense. OJ Porteria, who came in a substitute in the 55th minute, peppered the defense only to be denied by Yambou. Pachanga Diliman was finally able to bring the ball to their attacking third in this half. At the 72nd minute, Kaya’s keeper Matthew Silva stopped a chance by Hossein Doustdarsefidmazgi off a Davide Cortina pass. Ten minutes before the end of the match, Diego Barrera entered for the leading team. And as soon as he entered the pitch, he was able to put the game out of the opponent’s reach. Barrera received a pass from Ayu, who eluded Patxi Santos, and tapped the ball to the goal for his team’s third and peg the final score. At the 87th minute, Pachanga tried to get a goal back only for Silva to collect Doustdarsefidmazgi’s shot from way out. The match ended with Kaya clinching the top spot in the group with a 3-0 victory.
Kaya FC Team Manager Tolentino expressed his delight that his wards finished the group matches with a clean sheet. The long-time mentor said, “They got the job done. So, [it’s] good on them for doing that. I definitely want them to get the win today to get the best seeding possible.” Tolentino also emphasized that his team has a history of having problems on the knockout stages and to get this victory is important. On his part, Pachanga Diliman coach Francis Liza shared his disappointment that his team started poorly and conceded two goals in 10 minutes. The young coach stated, “Nung second half nag-adjust sa midfield pero ‘di nagwork. Kaya was the better team today,” he ended.
With the win Kaya finishes on top of the group while Pachanga Diliman finishes in second. The next phase of this Cup will be Round of 16, which will on happen on July.
