Nomads, Stallions overwhelm UFL Cup foes

Desperate for victories to keep their quarterfinal bids alive, Nomads and Stallion delivered in emphatic fashion Sunday night in the group stage of the United Football League Cup at University of Makati pitch.

Stallion, which lost to Army in the opener last Oct. 7, continued its steady climb in Group D with an 8-0 demolition of Agila.

Stung by a 1-8 loss to the Loyola Meralco Sparks last Tuesday, Nomads bounced back with a 7-2 beating of Mendiola to take top spot in Group C with nine points from four matches.

But the Parañaque-based club is not yet assured of a spot in the knockout stage with Loyola and Pachanga Diliman having a game in hand and are ahead of Nomads on goal difference.

Meanwhile, Philippine Army was held to a second straight 1-1 draw by Sta. Lucia in Group D, imperiling the Armymen’s bid to reach the last eight.

Defender Ed Gempisaw rescued the Troopers from defeat with his 64th-minute goal that cancelled out the opener from Kim Da-bin in the 24th minute for the Realtors.

Nomads, whose coach Michael Dennison resigned last week in protest of what he felt was substandard officiating in the league, needed to come back from a goal down twice before pulling through against Mendiola.

Jerome Orcullo gave Mendiola the lead in the 23rd, before Aaron de Rama equalized from the penalty spot six minutes later. Prince Alhassan struck 12 minutes into the second half, but a six-goal binge in the last 20 minutes kept Nomads’ quarterfinal hopes alive.