With conditions far from ideal and facing an opponent hell-bent on taking them down, the Ceres-Negros Busmen still found a way to squeeze out a hard-fought win that will go a long way in their quest for the Philippines Football League crown.
A first-half goal from OJ Porteria propelled the Busmen past their closest pursuers, Kaya-Iloilo, 1-0, as the Bacolod-based side solidified its hold of top spot in the PFL at Aboitiz Field in Lipa City.
Not even the dismissal of defender Sean Kane late in the first half due to a couple of yellow cards and a penalty in the second half could stop Ceres from extending their unbeaten start to nine matches this season.
Ceres jacked up its tally to 25 points, three ahead of Kaya, which has played one more game than the Busmen.
“It was amazing,” said Ceres captain Carlie De Murga as he reflected on the Busmen’s performance. “It wasn’t easy to play with the weather. It was a war. I knew we had one man less so we had to work harder so I’m very proud of every player in the team.”
Ceres coach Risto Vidakovic also got his marching orders five minutes from time for continuous complaining.
Kaya coach Noel Marcaida felt his side deserved to pick up at least a point for its performance.
“Every time we play against Ceres, it’s always a tough game,” said Marcaida. “The way we played, we deserved at least a point from this game. We were very unlucky not to get anything,”
Adding to Kaya’s woes was the red card slapped on captain Jovin Bedic late on. Bedic sent a penalty to the crossbar early in the second half, preserving Ceres’ lead.