Ceres-Meralco crucial duel up

THE CHASE for the second AFC Cup berth heats up today when defending league champion Ceres-La Salle squares off with Loyola Meralco in the United Football League at Rizal Memorial Stadium.

Kickoff is at 4 p.m. with the Busmen looking to avenge its 2-3 loss to the Sparks in their first round meeting.

The match is crucial for both teams which are locked with JP Voltes in the tight race for second spot. Global looks poised to clinch the title, needing just a couple of wins from its last three games to seal the crown.

“If we can match them, there’s a good chance that we might sneak something with the quality of players we have,” said Sparks coach Simon McMenemy.

Voltes stunned Global, 2-0, last Wednesday to pile up the pressure on Ceres and Loyola. As it stands, Voltes is in second with 37 points, although it has played two more matches than Loyola (34 points) and Ceres (32 points).