Laos U23 team had their warm up match with HAGL club from Vietnam in preparation for the 25th SEA Games in Chao Anou football stadium, Vientiane.
In the first match which kicked off on Sunday 22nd November, Laos team trounced Vietnam 4:0. However, the match on 24th November, Vietnam hit back and won Laos with the score 3:1.
This will be the final warm up match for Laos U23 team.
In 25th SEA Games, Laos will first meet Myanmar on December 5th.
The Lao Women's Football Federation will organise a final test event for its players on November 18-19 before the SEA Games get underway in December.
After conceding several goals at the International Women's Football Tournament held in Quang Ninh , Vietnam , last month, the team will play against a club from Chonbury province, Thailand , as a final test before the games.
Assistant coach Mr Viengsavanh Sengchanh accepted yesterday that his team was not as strong compared with the Thai and Vietnamese teams because they didn't practise before the tournament.
“We had left early hoping to practise in Vietnam for 10 days, but unfortunately there was a big storm in Vietnam then so for those 10 days we just ate and slept. We returned home for five days but the tournament organisers invited us to participate in the event so we decided to go ahead even though the players weren't fit,” he said.
After coming back from the tournament, the team starting practising hard by using the experience of the loss, and now they are getting better and are ready to take on the Thai team this month.
The squad has been training since April this year, and the federation invited countries in the region to a tournament in Champassak province. The Lao women were runners-up in the event.
“We have 25 players who are strong and ready to play in the SEA Games; I think they will be able to hold their heads high next month,” Mr Viengsavanh said.
The test event on November 18-19 will be another trial run for the Chao Anouvong and Dongdok stadiums to see if they are ready for the SEA Games.
“Fans can go to cheer the team for free during the competition on both days,” he said.
Mr Viengsavanh also explained that after the match the federation will continue with training and will select the final 20 players for the SEA Games.
“We promise we'll get one of the three medals for Laos ,” he said.
The women's football matches will be played in a group comprising Malaysia , Thailand , Myanmar , Vietnam and Laos .
“ Vietnam has the strongest team but we are trying our best,” Mr Viengsavanh said.
CANBERRA: Laos recovered from their thrashing at the hands of Australia to register a convincing victory of their own, over nine-man Malaysia in the AFC U-16 Championship 2010 Group H qualifying competition.
Laos, beaten 7-0 by the Aussies in their first match, were 4-0 up at half-time through Sitthideth Khanthavong, Lembo Saysana (two) and Nidnilanh Chanchaleune.
Lembo completed his hat-trick in the 73rd minute before substitute Southinh Sayalath put the finishing touches four minutes from the end.
Malaysia were not helped by two sendings-off. First, Nur Areff Bin Kamaruddin was given his marching orders after only 11 minutes and Akmal Bin Ishak was red-carded in the 72nd minute.
Australia are still favourites to win the sole qualifying berth from the three-team group, which is employing a double round-robin system. The Aussies next play Malaysia on Saturday.
While only the top team qualify from Group H, groups A-G will see the top two teams and the best third-placed side reach the finals.
Photo: Lamnao Singto ( centre ) shows his fancy footwork as he attempts to get the ball past a Malaysian defender.
The U-23 Lao football team wrapped up an unbeaten run at the 4-Nations Football Tournament last night with a 1-1 draw with Malaysia in front of home fans at the new 20,000-seat National Stadium in Vientiane
About 16,000 supporters turned out to watch the match, including a contingent of Malaysian fans.
The Lao side started their attack early, but had difficulty penetrating the Malaysian defence. The first half ended in a nil-nil draw.
However, the home team's game improved in the second half, proving more dangerous for the Malaysian defenders. During the second half the U-23s had a lot opportunities to score and take the lead, but several of their shots were off target.
In the 53rd minute, Lamnao Singto dribbled the ball past three of the Malaysian defenders before hitting the back of the net, but the referee called him off-side.
In the 70th minute, Lamnao shot again, but this time the ball soared over the crossbar. Another salvo was stopped by an excellent save from Malaysian keeper Muhammad Zamir B Selamat in the 74th minute.
The first goal for the Lao side came in the 81st minute, when Paseuthsack Souliyavong put the ball past the Malaysian keeper and into the net, thanks to an accurate cross from Lamnao in the penalty area.
However, the Lao side and their fans were able to enjoy this goal-scoring display for only one minute, with Malaysian team captain Mohamad Muslim Bin Ahmad heading the ball into the net at the opposite end in the 82nd minute.
No more goals were recorded, and the game ended in a draw.
Lao team manager Viphet Sihachackr said his team needed further improvement.
“I can say that the team's performance in this match is not satisfactory for me because we can see our team is not as strong as Malaysia , as they couldn't vie for the ball. We will improve this in the 60 days before the SEA Games.”
Malaysia 's coach Ong Kim Swee commended the Lao team on its performance.
“This was a big game for Laos because of the new stadium and we can see that the Lao team is better than previously as they made our players so tired tonight.
“Many players in the team were nervous in the earlier games, with the new stadium and many fans, particularly on the first day,” striker Lamnao Singto said.
“So in the second match we were getting better, and then this match we tried hard to win, but could only draw.”
Despite the game ending with a draw and without a goal from Lamnao, thousands of Lao football fans will remember the talented striker who wears jersey No. 8.
After last night's showing, fans hope to see Lamnao lead the team to victory at the upcoming SEA Games in December. They also hope to see their team continue to improve on their performances in the 4-Nations Tournament.
Laos began the tournament with a 2-2 draw with Vietnam and followed this with a crushing 3-0 defeat over Thailand .
In another match yesterday, Thailand defeated Vietnam 3-1. The tournament was intended to include all U-23 teams, but Thailand , Vietnam , and Malaysia confirmed they would replace their U-23 squads with U-19s.
Despite failed hopes to see all four U-23 teams on the field, thousands of Lao football fans attended to cheer on the Lao team at all matches in the new stadium.
The Lao U-23 side is currently preparing for the SEA Games under the expert eye of Austrian coach Mr Alfred Riedl.
The Lao team hopes to battle to the semi finals against a raft of strong opponents at the SEA Games, having never reached this placing at previous games.
However, their latest performance at the 4-Nations Tournament has shown that the Lao team has greatly improved, while also highlighting areas that need more development before taking to the field in the fast-approaching SEA Games.
The 4-Nations was not only a vital warm up for the national football team, but also a test of the new stadium facilities and TV broadcast crew in the lead up to the games.
The next international game for the Lao side will be in Phnom Penh at the Cambodia Royal Cup from November 8-13.
Laos will take on the Cambodian U-23 team, who are also preparing for the SEA Games, and also Hoang Anh Gia Lai and Vissai Ninh Binh football clubs of Vietnam .
The prize at the Cambodia Royal Cup is US$20,000 for the winner and US$10,000 and US$5,000 respectively for runners up.
The event was planned to help strengthen the countries' solidarity and friendly cooperation and mark the 56th anniversary of Cambodian National Day.
Vietnam’s U19 squad drew 2-2 with Laos’ U23s after failing to hold on to a 2-0 lead at the Pre-SEA Games tournament in Vientiane on Friday.
Ngo Hoang Thinh’s 13th minute goal took the lead early and Ha Minh Tuan’s 50th minute goal provided what should have been insurance for Vietnam’s U19 team.
But the Vietnamese side looked exhausted as the second half drew to an end and they lost control of the match. Laos took the chance and pulled one back with a goal by Kaysone Soukhavong in the 68th minute.
Vietnam still had the upper hand until a Vietnamese defender tackled a Lao player in the penalty area and Sangvone scored the equalizer from the penalty spot seven minutes from full time.
Earlier that day, Malaysia’s U19 squad and Thai U19s had also tied at the same score.
U23 squads from Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and Laos had originally signed up for the October 2-6 Pre-SEA (South East Asian) Games in Laos.
But Thailand decided to send its U19 players just a couple days before the competition started, prompting Vietnam and Malaysia to do the same.
In preparations for the 2009 SEA Games Laos, the Lao Football Federation, Lao National Television, and Crossfire Co. Ltd, are proud to announce the 2009 4-Nations Football Tournament. The national teams from Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Laos are playing an AFC sanctioned tournament, to promote the SEA Games theme of Generosity, Amity, and a Healthy Lifestyle in live television broadcasts throughout the pan-Asian region.
