Thursday, October 12, 2006 USC battles USJ-R for crown; Panthers take on UV booters
THE University of San Carlos (USC) will hope history won’t repeat itself when the young upstarts take on the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) for the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. football crown at the Cebu City Sports Center today.
Back in 2002, USC was and outplayed by the gritty Jaguars as USJ-R took its second straight crown with a 6-0 beating.
However, four years later, the tide could turn in favor of USC, coached by former national mainstay Joshua Fegidero and Gary Panagsagan, as they take on savvy coach Joselito Bono and the Jaguars.
In the elimination round, USC and USJ-R fought to a scoreless draw, and Fegidero has already corrected his team’s errors and flaws during that game.
Another thing counting on USC’s favor is its intact lineup, while USJ-R will be missing two players to a red card and an injury.
Meanwhile, the University of Southern Philippines-Foundation (USP-F) will face the University of the Visayas (UV) in the battle for third place today.
Curiously, in the 2002 season, USP-F defeated UV, 3-1, to finish third and both teams also drew their game in this year’s elimination round.
UV stormed ahead 2-1 before Christian Pacana scored in the 59th to level the match.
Both teams will also be missing a player each in today’s match after getting red-carded in the semifinal.
UV will miss Fritz Gomora, while USP-F will play minus striker Deck Pacana. (ML)
