Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Vientiane: Two goals in three second-half minutes saw Lao FC mark their AFC Cup debut with a come-from-behind 2-2 draw with Ayeyawady United from Myanmar in their Group H opener on Tuesday at the National Sports Complex Stadium.
Riste Naumov had netted first for the visitors on the 21st minute before the Macedonian striker extended the lead and completed his brace on 57 minutes.
But second-half substitute Sitthideth Khanthavong stunned MFF Cup winners Ayeyawady within a minute of coming on by reducing the deficit on the 63rd minute before midfielder Phatthana Syvilay scored the equaliser just two minutes later.
The result sees the sides share second place in the group after Indonesia Super League champions Persib Bandung eased past New Radiant with a 4-1 victory in front of a 15,000 crowd at Si Jalak Harupat Stadium in the day’s earlier kick-off.
“The first game of any competition is always very difficult and this was the first game of the year for us as our league season does not begin until Sunday,” said Lao FC coach David Booth.
“We made it very difficult for ourselves and we were slow in the first half giving away two soft goals. But in the second half we pushed on to them and got our reward with two quick goals.
“For Laos football any competition, any sort of outside competition, we are up against it. Our players know that. It’s a fight for us in any game.
“We didn’t get beat in our first game and held our own and could have won the match. Towards the end we were pushing forward to try and win it. With a few league games under our belt, we’ll hopefully be more competitive for the next AFC Cup match.”
The sides share second place in Group H after Indonesia Super League champions Persib Bandung beat Maldivian side New Radiant 4-1 in front of a 15,000 crowd at Si Jalak Harupat Stadium in the day’s earlier kick-off.
And it will be New Radiant and the Maldives as the destination for Lao FC in a fortnight’s time, while Ayeyawady United will have a tough test when they host early pacesetters Persib in Yangon.