Air Force Rider, Army Phiten dispute UFL-LBC crown

MANILA, Philippines – Air Force Rider and Army Phiten successfully accomplished their respective semifinal assignments last Sunday to figure in the finals of the United Football League-LBC Cup.

At the Ateneo de Manila University football field in Quezon City, Air Force banked on effective ball rotation to clobber Navy Selecta, 3-2, for the first finals slot. Both teams fought on even terms early in the game, closing out the first half on a 1-1 deadlock.

Air Force’s Ian Araneta broke the ice at the 99-minute mark by scoring on a corner kick. Yanti Barsales nailed another goal five minutes later to secure the victory for the unbeaten Air Force.

At the Nomads football grounds in Parañaque City, Army Phiten booted out Kaya Digiprint in penalty shootout, 5-4, to complete the UFL-LBC Cup’s finals cast.

Both teams waged a heated war all throughout the game, which was marred by a total of six yellow card penalties. The match was eventually decided on a penalty shootout, which was topped by Army Phiten, 4-3.

With their respective victories, Air Force Rider and Army Phiten move on to a single-game finals collision on Sunday at Nomads. Admission for the match is free.

Gametime is 6 p.m.

The UFL-LBC Cup is backed by corporate sponsors LBC Express, Inc., Rudy Project, Gatorade, McDonald’s, Nike Park and Globe. Media partners include philstar.com, Magic 89.9, Wave

89.1, MaxFM 103.5, Studio 23 and Balls.

For more details on the UFL-LBC Cup, visit http://www.footballalliance.ph/index.html.