THE UST Golden Booters bowed to the UP Fighting Maroons, 2-1, after squandering their lead in their UAAP Season 86 men’s football opener at the UP Diliman Football Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 18.
Despite taking the lead in the 17th minute through Golden Booter midfielder Andrew Ramos,1-0, UST’s aggressive first-half play saw them concede yellow cards to strikers John Mark Garcia during the 27th minute and Francis Jay Vercide in the 37th minute.
UST goalkeeper and captain Miguel Abada kept UP at bay in the first half, blocking UP forward Jan Ceena Donato’s attempt to score, 1-0.
The second half told a different story, as the Golden Booters struggled to maintain their dominance after the Fighting Maroons executed a strong offense-defense pattern.
UP’s forward Francis Tacardon leveled the match after scoring a goal from a close range in the 60th minute, 1-1.
UP’s Austin Basconcillo sealed the game-winning goal for the Fighting Maroons in the 75th minute, ending the second half at 2-1.
UST head coach Marjo Allado said fatigue was a factor in the loss as he vowed to prepare for the next game with recovery-oriented strategies.
“Going into the second half, the game slipped away because of dead legs, but we have to treat this UP game as a lesson and utilize it in the next game. We need to boost the players’ morale,” Allado said.
“We’re going to check our preparation and recovery before the game since most of our team are young blood and rookies. I think this is a lesson for us to wake up and do better next time.”
The Golden Booters will seek to bounce back as they face the Adamson Soaring Falcons on Thursday, Feb. 22, at the same venue. F
