Photo by Bethan Mobey (C)
There is no stopping the Philippine Homeless World Cup team.
The hardworking Philippine side fueled its hot streak in the 2011 Homeless World Cup as the Filipinos stunned Croatia, 8-5, Wednesday in the eight-day street soccer meet in the beautiful city of Paris in France.
Coming off a respectable loss against football powerhouse Netherlands, 2-5, the Filipinos came out guns ablaze and finished off the Croatians with their slick passing and clinical finishing in the event Arena at Champ de Mars, with the Eiffel Tower on the background.
Skipper Janrick Soriano, a native of Negros Occidental and one of the most experienced among the boys, completed his hatrick in the first half and netted two more, while Barotac Nuevo’s John—fondly known as Putot—Celis score two goals, even as co-captain Jeffrey Guelas from Manila added one.
The Philippines, mentored by former national team member Rudy Del Rosario, came out strong and finished even stronger and sent the Croatians clueless on how to contain’s the Filipinos lightning-quick attacking.
The Philippines will face Poland Thursday, and only those who will advance further will get a chance to fight for the Homeless World Cup title (1st to 8th position).
The rest will contest the other cups like Dignitary Cup (9th to 16th), City Cup (17th-24th), Host Cup (25th to 32nd), Community Cup (33rd to 40th) and INSP Networking Trophy (41st to 48th).
The 48 participating countries were divided into two sections after the first stage, with the top three in each group progressing to section one.
Jeffrey De Castro from Cainta , Ricardo Padilla from Pangasinan, Aljhonn Loui Matulac from Estancia in Iloilo, Bert Anthony Sienes from Boystown in Manila, and Michael Rojo also from Talisay City in Bacolod round up the squad, which was formed off of a nationwide search, buoyed only by donations and sponsorships they garnered in the past months.