MANILA – Kaya Iloilo is determined to surprise Filipino football fans when it battles Davao Aguilas in the final round of the 2018 Philippine Football League Copa Paulino Alcantara on Saturday at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Tipped as the finals underdog, Kaya players are extra motivated to prove doubters wrong, team media director Jing Jamlang told Panay News.
“They are saying we are the underdog in this final [round]. Kaya is used to that,” Jamlang said. “Kaya is the team that a lot of people look at and think they are not that good. But we surprise a lot of people.”
On paper, there is reason to tip Aguilas as the favored team. Its roster is bannered by Philippine Azkals mainstays Phil and James Younghusband, Jason de Jong, Matthew Hartmann, and Joshua Grommen.
Kaya, on the other hand, has a bunch of unheralded but hardworking players – Robert Lopez Mendy, Masanari Omura, Alfred Osei, and Jovin Bedic – who are determined to give their opponents a shocker.
“Being put in that corner is something that fires up the boys,” Jamlang said. “They are ready to fight for one another. That’s all they can do. They will try their best on Saturday and that’s a guarantee.”
The do-or-die championship match is much coveted for both teams – a victory guarantees a chance to join League champion Ceres Negros in the 2019 AFC Cup.
Kaya and Aguilas made it to the finals are disposing of their respective opponents in the semifinal round on Sunday – the former edged Stallion Laguna (3-2) while the latter walloped JPV Marikina (6-1)./PN
