REIGNING AFC Cup ASEAN Zonal winner Ceres-Negros FC tries to hold on to its title as it plays Home United FC in Singapore in the second leg of their final today.
Held to a 1-1 draw in the first leg in Bacolod City on Aug. 1, the Busmen need to beat the Protectors convincingly in their home turf of Jelan Besar Stadium at 7:30 p.m. to keep the title and progress to the next round of the tournament.
Last week in the first leg at the Panaad Park and Football Stadium, Ceres got off to a good start with Australian striker Blake Powell scoring off a penalty in the eighth-minute mark to hand Ceres the early lead.
But the visitors found themselves leveled at 1-1 when forward Isaka Cernak scored at the 23rd minute off a rebound.
The two teams tried to seize the lead for the rest of the opening half but found themselves knotted at 1-1 at halftime.
The nip-and-tuck engagement continued at the start of the second half with both teams having their chances at getting the go-ahead.
As time wound up, Ceres tried hard to find a winner to give itself some cushion in the second leg but none would come, leaving the Bacolod team to settle for the draw.
While recognizing that they have some ground to cover to repeat as Zonal winner, veteran Ceres midfielder OJ Porteria believes they are capable of getting the job done on enemy territory.
“I think last year was a great motivator for us to come out in the second leg (at home) strong, because we knew we had to get the win. The same goes for this year, since they have the slight advantage with the away goal, we will be coming out fighting for our lives,” Mr. Porteria was quoted as saying by the AFC website in an interview, referring to last year’s edition of the Zonal final also against Home United where Ceres overturned a 1-2 deficit in Singapore to win 2-0 at home to clinch the inaugural title.
“I feel like if we won the first leg, we could get too comfortable, but with this result we have something to prove. Whether the game is in Bacolod or in Singapore it doesn’t really matter. We’ve got one job and that’s to finish this second leg with a win and I think this year and especially last year, the team has shown that when our backs are against the wall, we give it our all,” he added.
Ceres will continue to miss the services of top scorer Bienvenido Maranon, suspended following his sending-off against Yangon United in group play on May 16.
The eventual winner of the ASEAN Zonal Final between Ceres and Home United will play DPR Korea’s 4.25 SC in the Inter-Zone Semifinals later this month. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo
