Iloilo, Mendiola booters arrange title showdown

ILOILO City - Host Iloilo and Mendiola United carved out contrasting semifinal wins Saturday to set up a showdown for the third Adidas Cup under-19 national football championship.

The Ilonggos banked on Joebel Bermejo's superb marker in the 37th minute to nip hardfighting Dumaguete, 1-0, and the Manila boys peaked in the second half to rout M'lang National High School, 5-0, in semifinal matches held at nearby Barotac Nuevo.

Iloilo and Mendiola United dispute the title at 2:30 p.m. Sunday while Dumaguete tackles M'lang in the battle for third place earlier in the day at 9 a.m. in the Adidas-sponsored event backed by Globe Telecoms.

"We are mentally and physically prepared for this tournament. I think we have a good chance of winning," said Mendiola United coach Aris Caslib, whose key players, ironically, come from Iloilo.

In contrast to Caslib's optimism, Iloilo coach Alberto Delgado's was more tempered saying: "We will just have to do our best since two of my mainstays -- midfielder Bermejo and fullback Rene Suganob -- won't be playing."

Referee Teddy Segundo, trying to keep the highly-physical match from going out of hand, slapped Bermejo and Suganob yellow cards, the second for each player, so both will serve a one-game suspension and miss the match that matters most.

The good news for Iloilo is that prolific striker Marlon Solas, who sat out the semifinal match after being handed a red card in Friday's game against Masbate, will be back in harness to boost the home squad's offense.

Bermejo produced the winning goal that was the best by far in the series.