Josh Meriño and Ramil Bation III scored timely goals as defending champions University of the Philippines defeated University of Santo Tomas, 2-1, to open their title defense in the UAAP Season 89 Collegiate Men’s Football Tournament on Thursday at the UP Diliman Football Stadium.
Much like when he scored the Philippines’ first goal in the Asian Games after 52 years, Meriño opened the season on the right foot for the Fighting Maroons, tapping in from close range after Miguel Basmayor’s pass to finally give UP the deserved breakthrough in the 69th minute.
Bation then doubled the lead for the home side in the 90th minute, weaving his way through the defense before calmly finishing for the insurance goal.
UP repeatedly tried to breach the UST backline, with Bation III and returning forward Joses Azur leading the charge. However, goalkeeper Mark Daig proved equal to the challenge and kept the Golden Booters in the game before Meriño finally broke the deadlock.
UST, however, pulled one back late in the match. Midfielder Val Orate prevented a shutout by scoring in stoppage time for the squad’s first goal of the season, denying UP and reigning Best Goalkeeper Fonzy Gonzalez a clean sheet.
“Our objective for this season would be accountability. Each and every one is responsible for the actions that we do and the decisions that we make. In that sense, if we are all accountable for the actions and decisions that we make, we can create a much bigger picture, like a puzzle; we come together. And that’s what we want to achieve this season,” said head coach Popoy Clarino on how the squad approaches its title defense.
With the opening game out of the way, Clarino wants his players to put a premium on rest and recovery.
“It’s good to get the first game out. It’s a very short first round; we’re playing six games in eighteen days, so the goal is to really prepare for each game and keep everyone healthy,” said the long-time mentor.
“We want to be responsible inside and outside of the field. Puhunan nila is yung katawan nila. So ngayon na nag-uulan, nag-iinit, bawal magkasakit. Para rin iwas sa gastos ng mga magulang. But at the same time, we want them, when they get to play, everyone is well-prepared, everyone is ready, and we have a fairly balanced team. We know that each and every individual can contribute a lot, so we are very much excited for this team,” he added.
(C) UAAP Season 89 Media Team
The Fighting Maroons moved level with three points and a plus-one goal difference with the Adamson Soaring Falcons, who have a match later in the day against the Ateneo Blue Eagles.
UP, seeking to become the first school to win back-to-back titles since Far Eastern University last accomplished the feat in the 2014-15 season, will take on the same Ateneo side on Sunday in the Battle of Katipunan at 4:30 p.m.
On the other hand, the Golden Booters slipped to fifth place and remain in search of their first points of the season after two matches.
UST will take a one-week break before battling Ateneo on Thursday at 2 p.m.
