Chieffy lifts Archers; Kaya nips Loyola
CHIEFFY Caligdong struck in extra time to lift Green Archers Globe to a dramatic 1-0 victory over Pachanga Diliman last night and a place in the semifinals of the PFF Smart National Club Championship at Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Acquired by Archers early this year after a decade-long spell at Air Force, Caligdong immediately proved his worth with a late strike that sent the UFL side to its first appearance in the last four of the tournament.
Kept quiet by the Pachanga defense for most of the match, Caligdong recovered the ball inside the area after a defensive mixup, but had his initial effort blocked by Pachanga keeper Kim Versales. Caligdong seized the rebound and made no mistake from a tight angle.
Green Archers will meet the winner of the Pasargad-General Trias International clash that was being played at press time.
Kaya also made the last four, finally slaying an old ghost in Loyola Meralco with a 1-0 conquest Saturday night.
OJ Porteria scored the only goal of the match in the 58th minute, enabling Kaya to end a long losing spell to the Sparks that dated back to their UFL Cup semifinal defeat in December 2010.
The win boosted Kaya to a last-four duel with surprise semifinalist Ceres, which nipped defending champion Global, 1-0, Saturday.
Even with the presence of experienced strikers Phil Younghusband, Freddie Gonzalez and Chad Gould, the Sparks found an undermanned yet disciplined Kaya side tough to break down.
Porteria provided the flash of inspiration, firing past Loyola keeper Ref Cuaresma from a tight angle after a superb delivery from Guam international Jonahan Romero.