Iloilo's greater precision in the second half accounted for their impressive 3-2 victory over an all-San Carlos crew from Negros Occidental to clinch the first finals slot in the secondary boys' football competition of the Western Visayas Regional Athletic Association Meet yesterday.

The San Carlos booters, who preferred to wear their red and black jerseys instead of the traditional light blue kit of Negros, blew a two-goal lead, before allowing Romeo Martinez to unleash a blistering strike from just inside the box for the marginal goal 10 minutes from time at the Paglaum Sports Complex pitch.

"The boys were really tired," said Negros coach Tata Parel, whose players only had a five-hour rest for the match, after defeating Capiz, 6-1, yesterday morning. The Negrenses get the chance to avenge their defeat to Iloilo, if they beat Capiz at 8 a.m. today for the last finals berth. But they would need to prevail against Iloilo twice to reclaim the title last won by a Negros team in 2004 when the province was represented by Victorias, San Carlos, Bago and Bacolod booters.

Iloilo once again left San Carlos undone with a strong performance in the second half, after goals from Lope Mayagma and Ryan Lerio gave the Negrenses a 2-0 cushion at halftime.

It was actually the same Iloilo squad that ousted San Carlos in the Visayas Under-17 Championships in Cebu, where the Negrenses also squandered a two-goal advantage to pave the way for a 2-2 draw that hastened their exit in the tournament.

The wind helped push Mayagmuill's swerving corner kick goalwards, catching Iloilo keeper Wilson Munoz flat-footed in the 4th minute. It was 2-0 at the stroke of halftime as Lerio broke free from the offside trap to easily slot the ball past the Iloilo keeper. While San Carlos was losing its touch, the Ilonggos were slowly finding their feet and a period of sustained pressure was rewarded when Jhenver Vergara launched a blistering left-footed strike from an acute angle that went straight into the right top corner in the 46th minute.

Negros keeper Benito Rosalia actually set up the equalizing goal for Iloilo when he stepped out of his area in clearing the ball, prompting referee Porferio Barlas to give Iloilo a free kick from a very dangerous area. Joven Bedic took the ensuing spot kick and left Rosalia rooted with an intelligent strike to the keeper's left hand side in the 66th minute, before Martinez finally completed the improbable victory, pouncing on a scramble after San Carlos defenders failed to clear their lines.

Parel defended his decision to field an all-San Carlos line-up in the Palaro, saying the team was "strong enough for the tournament", after winning convincingly in last year's Provincial Meet. "We would have found difficulty with cohesion and chemistry if we selected players from other teams," Parel said. *CPT

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