Yangon: Singapore finished with a flourish, ending their AFC U-23 Championship qualifying campaign with a 4-1 win over Brunei DS at Thuwana Stadium in Yangon on Sunday.
Both teams had already been eliminated and were playing for pride but Singapore were the deadlier of the two.
Singapore got their opening goal in the 14th minute with striker Ikhsan Fandi Ahmad surprising the Brunei goalkeeper from the left. It was Singapore's first goal of the competition.
Mohamad Hanafi Mohd Akbar hit the second goal in the 38th minute but Brunei midfielder Azim Izamuddin gave his side hope when he reduced the deficit just before the half time whistle.
Singapore remained on top when play resumed and Taufik Suparno and Ikhsan ensured they finished on a high by scoring in the 87th and 90th minutes respectively.
Kwon Oh-son (Brunei DS Head Coach)
"I’m very disappointed with our performance and results. But we’ll rectify our weaknesses. And we will be back with a better performance in the SEA Games. In this competition, I was testing my players. I will make some changes for the SEA Games."
Richard Tardy (Singapore Head Coach)
"I know our results are bad in this tournament. In the first game, we met a tough Myanmar team. In the second game, Australia broke our team. But I’m satisfied with the victory over Brunei. We have only 20 days to prepare for the SEA Games. I know the SEA Games is a tough competition because all teams want gold. We’ll also try our best and that’s all I can say."
Source: the-afc.com