MCL Round-up

Last weekend’s reduced fixture list in the Metfone C-League saw Phnom Penh Crown re-take the top spot from Boeung Ket. Crown, with injury problems, took their time to overcome an Army outfit, who’d beaten NagaCorp the previous week. In fact, Army took the lead when Ngoy Srin headed past his own goalkeeper for an own goal, but Crown didn’t falter and went onto win with second-half goals from captain Kouch Sokumpheak and George Bisan. The Nigerian striker now has 11 goals this season and leads the chase for the Golden Boot award as the league’s leading goalscorer. This Sunday, Crown will look to extend their lead with a match against struggling Kirivong under the Olympic Stadium floodlights. Boeung Ket are keeping the league leaders in sight and netted two late goals to sink TriAsia in their exciting clash on Saturday. New French signing Ibrahima Sow scored on his debut and Chukwuma Ohuruogu grabbed the winner two minutes from time after Sok Chanrasmey had put TriAsia in front early on. Boeung Ket will look to take down the National Police this coming weekend to continue to keep the pressure on at the top.  The Police scored the only goal of the game with a massively deflected shot under floodlights, when they met Build Bright United on Sunday evening. It wasn’t a game that will remain in the memory for too long.

In the only other match last Saturday, struggling Western University must’ve thought their luck had turned when they went into a two-goal lead through Privat Mbarga and Deun Sotheara. But Asia Euro University had other ideas and Sok Sengtara scored before the break, with George Kelechi forcing the equalizer home in the dying moments of the game. Points shared between the two university sides.

With both NagaCorp, who meet Home United, and Svay Rieng, up against Albirex Niigata (they lost 3-0), in the RHB Singapore Cup this week, the two teams get another free weekend, but will be back in action during the following midweek. This Saturday – 31 May – the Phnom Penh Crown Academy U-16 team will entertain Lao Toyota FC from Laos in the first home tie of the Asia U-16 Champions Trophy. The match will kick-off in the morning at 9am and the game will be televised live by Bayon TV. In their two matches so far, the Crown Academy youngsters have won 2-1 in Guangdong, China but came unstuck in Malaysia last weekend, losing 3-2 to Frenz United in stoppage time.