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The second annual Manila 12-a-side Cup was once again held at the illustrious confines of the magnificent Manila Polo Club, without doubt the best playing field in Asia. There was a massive downpour of rain on Friday afternoon, which looked like it may cause some logistical issues, but nonetheless brought some much needed water to the hardened turf to soften it up nicely.
In contrast to last year when the sun was belting down all day without a single cloud in the sky, the day got of to a wet start. The rain eased before the kick off but with the sun peaking through the clouds, the humidity increased significantly. Anyway, enough about the bloody weather – let’s talk about the footy!!!
With the word “hangover” being a central theme amongst all the clubs, China in particular having arrived on the Thursday, there were some bleary eyes at the first bounce in the replay of last years Manila Cup Grand final, between the Hong Kong Dragons and the Malaysian Warriors. The Dragons caught the Warriors with their pants down and ran out rather comfortable 44 points and got everyone thinking, will the Dragons go back-to-back?! Early days, but there were some concerned faces amongst the teams.
Following are the results for the reminder of the round robin games which you can read as I am sure you don’t want to hear my boring blow by blow commentary. Having said that, games 3 and 5, both featuring the Malaysian Warriors were both absolute cliffhangers. The Warriors did really well in both games keeping their opponents at bay and it took goal of the day from Rooster, a miraculous kick from the right forward pocket, to steal a win against the Philippine Eagles in game 5.
| Game 1 |
Goals |
Behinds |
Total |
| Malaysian Warriors |
0 |
1 |
1 |
| Hong Kong Dragons |
7 |
3 |
45 |
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| Game 2 |
Goals |
Behinds |
Total |
| Darkside Dragons
|
1 |
3 |
9 |
| Philippine Eagles
|
3 |
6 |
24 |
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| Game 3 |
Goals |
Behinds |
Total |
| China Reds
|
3 |
5 |
23 |
| Malaysian Warriors
|
4 |
2 |
26 |
|
|
|
|
| Game 4 |
Goals |
Behinds |
Total |
| Hong Kong Dragons
|
6 |
3 |
39 |
| Darkside Dragons
|
3 |
0 |
18 |
|
|
|
|
| Game 5 |
Goals |
Behinds |
Total |
| Philippine Eagles
|
3 |
0 |
18 |
| Malaysian Warriors
|
2 |
10 |
22 |
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|
|
| Game 6 |
Goals |
Behinds |
Total |
| China Reds
|
1 |
3 |
9 |
| Hong Kong Dragons
|
5 |
1 |
31 |
|
|
|
|
| Game 7 |
Goals |
Behinds |
Total |
| China Reds
|
7 |
4 |
46 |
| Darkside Dragons
|
2 |
3 |
14 |
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|
|
|
| Game 8 |
Goals |
Behinds |
Total |
| Hong Kong Dragons
|
7 |
5 |
27 |
| Philippine Eagles
|
0 |
2 |
2 |
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|
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| Game 9 |
Goals |
Behinds |
Total |
| Hongila Dogs
|
0 |
2 |
2 |
| Malaysian Warriors
|
7 |
4 |
46 |
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| Game 10 |
Goals |
Behinds |
Total |
| China Reds
|
8 |
5 |
53 |
| Philippine Eagles
|
3 |
1 |
19 |
The rain set in after lunch which literally put a dampener on things, but the skill level still remained of a high standard for the onlookers as they crowded for cover under the tents. The Hong Kong Dragons were looking as strong as ever and answered the challenge of all their opponents as they went though the round robin undefeated. Please see the ladder below:
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| Manila Cup 2008 Ladder |
| Team |
Wins |
Loses |
For |
Against |
% |
Points |
| Hong Kong Dragons |
4 |
0 |
142 |
30 |
473.33 |
16 |
| Malaysian Warriors |
3 |
1 |
95 |
88 |
107.95 |
12 |
| China Reds |
2 |
2 |
131 |
90 |
145.56 |
8 |
| Philippine Eagles |
1 |
3 |
63 |
111 |
56.76 |
4 |
| Darkside Dragons |
0 |
4 |
43 |
155 |
27.74 |
0 |
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The Grand Final ended up being a replay of last years Grand Final with the Hong Kong Dragons and the Malaysian Warriors fighting it out for the prestigious Manila Cup. Unfortunately for the Warriors, the “replay” was indeed a replay with the Hong Kong Dragons running out very comfortable 57 point winners without being troubled too much along the way. All credit to the Warriors who once again, made it though to the Grand Final for the second year running and holding them in good stead as they host this years Asian Championships on September 5. Final scores:
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| Grand Final |
| Hong Kong Dragons |
9 |
11 |
(65) |
| Malaysian Warriors |
1 |
2 |
(8) |
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Summary: The Hong Kong Dragons have further stamped their authority on the Asian Aussie Rules circuit by making it back-to-back Manila Cups, and really setting the standard for future Manila Cup tournaments. Although the scoreboard doesn’t quite reflect all the results from the games, China, Malaysia and the Philippines all showed further improvement from last year which will ensure that the standard of the competition is maintained and will inevitably improve. We look forward to hosting the Manila Cup again on May 29, 2010 and welcome other countries to participate.
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