Wear blue, cheer for RP booters

BACOLOD — Football fans are expected to come in droves when the Asean Football Championship’s final qualifying round starts tomorrow at the Panaad Sports Complex.

Each player and official of the sport, team, city and Negros Occidental province has requested all who are coming to the games, open free to the public, to wear blue as a token of support for the national team.

"The Philippine team will be in blue and we expect our countrymen to wear that color," said Johnny Romualdez, president of the Philippine Football Federation.

"Our kababayans coming in force and supporting our team will indeed be a big boost for us, the way they did during the (23rd) SEA Games," said national coach Aris Caslib.

An average attendance of 20,000, most of them football-fanatic Negrenses, regularly cheered on the RP Team during the 2005 SEAG and officials here expect the same turnout in each of the Nationals’ four games.

The RP team needs all the boost it can get to finish among the top two in the five-team event and make it to the tournament proper slated in January.

First up for the Nationals in the tournament’s opening game at 4:30 p.m. is Laos, the best-ranked in the Asean Football Federation event being hosted by the Negros Occidental Football Association.

The other opening day game set to start at 7 p.m. pits Timor Leste and Brunei.

After Laos, the RP XI next takes on Timor Leste on Tuesday (Nov. 14), second-ranked Cambodia Saturday (Nov. 18) and Brunei at tournament’s end on Monday (Nov. 20).

Caslib is set to announce the final composition of the 18-man RP Team during the managers’ meeting set later Saturday and officials expressed confidence the Nationals can overcome the odds.

"We’ve beaten these teams before and our boys come into this series prepared and focused on making a good showing," said Pablito Araneta, PFF vice president who is also the association’s chairman for competitions.