Sydney, Australia — Against tough competition in even tougher conditions, Kaya FC-Iloilo fell to Sydney FC, 5-0, in the AFC Champions League Preliminary Round. Kaya were outmatched by their Australian counterparts tonight leading to the one-sided result, but it was an invaluable learning experience for the squad moving forward.
Strong winds made life difficult for everyone on the pitch, only for it to be joined by torrential rain in the second half— the same downpour that threatened to postpone the match earlier in the day.
Seemingly inspired by the weather, Sydney FC came out the gates with a deluge of their own. The home team got off shot after shot in the opening minutes, but Zach Banzon held his ground with save after save. His heroics prevented Kaya from falling into an early deficit and allowed the side to find their shape and settle down a touch.
However, the Sky Blues eventually found joy in the 30th minute. A high cross in behind led to a shot that Zach dove to save, only for the ball to bounce into the path of Sydney’s Trent Buhagiar to clean up.
Iloilo managed to hold the Australian side to a one-nil score going into the break, but a disastrous start to the second half found the lead ballooning to three. Sydney’s Bobô put in a poacher’s finish in the 47th minute, followed by converting a penalty in the 49th. Fitch Arboleda unintentionally clipped a streaking player just inside the box, and Banzon guessed right but the ball was just out of reach.
Jarvey Gayoso checked into the game in the 60th, and with him came a change in formation with Kaya shifting to a back three. The boys started to look more dangerous on counters, stringing together chances with newcomer Jesse Curran creating through the middle.
Sydney had the wind at their back nonetheless (quite literally in the second half), with a newly subbed-in Adam le Fondre scoring a header off a corner in the 71st. He secured his brace ten minutes later after a wind-altered goal kick landed in a dangerous area, leading to their fifth goal of the evening.
The boys kept fighting through it all and created some great chances down the stretch that just didn’t go their way. Curran’s beauty of a cross in the 82nd was just out of reach for the runners; Robert Lopez Mendy’s overhead kick in the 86th flew just over the bar; and most torturously, Jesse connected with Robert on a long pass in the 93rd, who shuttled it forward to Jhan Melliza in space. He went 1-on-1 with the keeper, but his shot sailed wide and Kaya just couldn’t find consolation in the end.
Kaya used three of their five available substitutions tonight. Gayoso checked in for Arboleda in the 60th, Melliza subbed in for Eric Giganto in the 64th, and Sandro Reyes relieved captain Jovin Bedic in the 80th. Carlyle Mitchell was the evening’s only booking, the defender was given a yellow card for a tough foul in the 89th.
Turning the page, Iloilo still has a chance to make some noise on the continental stage. Tonight’s loss means that the club’s heading to the AFC Cup in June, slotting into Group G alongside Indonesia’s Bali United, Malaysia’s Kedah Darul Aman, and Cambodia’s Visakha FC. As for the immediate future, Kaya kicks off the 2022 Copa Paulino Alcantara versus Maharlika Manila next Monday.
