Surprising Thailand win on penalties

By.. Tor Chittinand Bangkok Post

Thailand's national football team pulled off a surprise victory when they defeated Newcastle United 4-2 on penalties after the sides were level 1-1 at full time in last night's clash at Rajamangala Stadium.

It was a well deserved result after an encouraging performance by the Thai team who, in front of nearly 40,000 fans, upstaged their illustrious opponents in the first half, although Newcastle fought back strongly after the break.

Newcastle have only been in training for a week and it looked like it in the first half when the Thai team, who have played several matches recently, looked much the sharper team.

With Alan Shearer being marked tightly, Newcastle struggled to make many openings and the Magpies goalkeeper Shay Given was far the busier of the two custodians.

With Therdsak Chaiman playing very effectively in midfield, Thailand dominated proceedings and it was Therdsak who finished off a fine run with a testing shot for Given in the 16th minute.

But Given had no chance with Thailand's goal which came three minutes later. A long ball from Rangsan Vivatchaichoke split the Newcastle defence and with Titus Bramble missing the clearance the ball fell to Sarayoot Chaikumdee who neatly slotted the ball past Given to make it 1-0, much to the delight of the crowd.

In the 23rd minute Thailand had another good chance when Datsakorn Thonglao was put through on the left but his shot hit the side netting.

Newcastle had a couple of half-chances at the other end but Shearer was not being given much scope by the Thai defence.

Bad news for Thailand, however, was the sight of Therdsak limping off in the 37th minute after his impressive performance. The Thai playmaker had only just returned after a long injury and Thai fans will be hoping it is nothing serious just days before the Asian Cup starts.

In the last minute of the first half, Thailand nearly got a second goal but Niweat Siriwong's shot was well-saved by Given.

Newcastle made three changes in the second half and it sparked a much-improved performance. Shola Ameobi replaced Shearer, Lee Bowyer came on for Gary Speed and James Milner replaced Laurent Robert.

The visitors stepped up the pace with this infusion of new blood with Milner being particularly lively and Bowyer effective in midfield.

And it was Bowyer who notched the equaliser for Newcastle in the 62nd minute. Darren Ambrose was put through and although his fierce shot was well-saved by Kosin Hathairratanakul the ball rebounded to Bowyer who volleyed the ball home nicely from the edge of the area.

Newcastle had another chance three minutes later after a good interchange between Bowyer and Michael Chopra but Chopra's shot was well saved by Kosin.

It was fitting that Thailand got the final chance of the match when Sutee Suksomkij was put through but his shot went over the bar.

The game then had to be decided on a penalty shoot out. Thailand converted four of their five spot kicks while Newcastle could only manage two of the four they took.

On target for Thailand in the shootout were Sarayoot who converted the deciding penalty, Rangsan Vivatchaichoke, Datsakorn and Worachai Surisirirat while Issawa Singtong missed.

For Newcastle, Ameobi and Martin Britain found the back of the net but Bowyer and Milner missed.

After the match, Newcastle manager, Sir Bobby Robson praised the Thai team for their performance.

"Thailand played very well, especially in the first half," he said. "They were also very fit."

Sir Bobby said the Newcastle players weren't fully match-fit as they had only been in training for nine days.

He said he was very pleased with the performance of Milner in his first game for the club. He also praised Bowyer for his well-taken goal.

Shearer said Thailand were fitter than his team and that made a big difference. He said Newcastle played better in the second half. He wasn't too bothered about the penalty shootout as that was just a matter of luck.

Thailand team manager Maj Gen Akarachai Chantaratosa said he was very pleased with his team's performance. "On this form we can go into the Asian Cup with confidence," he said.
 

Thaiticketmaster Outlets:

Call Center: +662 204-9999 | Email: contact_us@thaiticketmaster.com