ILOILO City – Kaya Futbol Club-Iloilo made a triumphant homecoming. It scored a 2-1 victory over United City Football Club in the 2022 Philippines Football League on Saturday at the Iloilo Sports Complex here.
Arnel Amita and Jarvey Gayoso drained a goal each as the Iloilo City-based football club tightened its hold on the top spot of the standings with 30 points on 10 victories and three losses.
Kaya-Iloilo got some great looks early in the opening half courtesy of Robert Lopez Mendy but only managed to open the scoring at the 34th minute via a close-range goal from Amita.
United City, however, managed to tie the score at 1-1 just before the halftime break courtesy of a penalty kick by Kenshiro Daniels at the 45th minute after the Ilonggos were called for a handball violation.
Jovic Bedic had a chance to surge Kaya-Iloilo ahead early in the second half but just narrowly missed the mark before Gayoso gave the Ilonggos a 2-1 upperhand with his 78th minute connection.
Gayoso had another conversion at the 91st minute mark but it was ruled as an offside by the referees. United City also drilled an equalizer four minutes later but it was waved off due to a foul on the penalty area.
Kaya-Iloilo head coach Yu Hoshide said the presence of the Ilonggo football fans at the ISC have energized and motivated his squad to score their first victory against long-time PVL rivals this year.
“I would like to thank all those who were involved in making this happen in Iloilo, and I told the players to carry the joy of playing in front of their home fans and supporters,” said Hoshide.
“Home crowds put pressure on a team, but in a good way,” he added. “The players also had extra energy from the stadium atmosphere, so playing here is going to be a really good experience to have.”
For time Tarlac-based United City FC, the four-time defending champions of the League, they suffered their first defeat this season on top of seven victories and three draws for 24 points./PN
