Vietnam surpasses 100 gold medals at SEA Games 31; Coach Brad Maloney is ready to face Coach Park

Coach Brad Maloney is ready for the confrontation with U23 Vietnam

On the afternoon of May 17, the U23 Malaysia team arrived in Phu Tho, ready to face U23 Vietnam - a team that coach Brad Maloney assessed as very strong under the leadership ofCoach Park Hang-seo.

After nearly 3 hours of traveling from Nam Dinh to Phu Tho, the U23 Malaysia team arrived in Viet Tri city to prepare for the match against U23 Vietnam on May 19.

Coach Brad Maloney answered the press after arriving with U23 Malaysia in Viet Tri, Phu Tho.

Immediately after arriving at the hotel, Australian coach Brad Maloney shared: "I am very happy that U23 Malaysia has reached the semi-finals. We will meet host U23 Vietnam and are ready for a confrontation that is not easy at all."

Coach Brad Maloney said that U23 Malaysia spent 3 hours traveling by bus, the group had a police car to guide them so the trip was very convenient.

He expressed his satisfaction with the preparations of the Organizing Committee. This is the first time Coach Brad Manoley has led U23 Malaysia as head coach, but he is no stranger to this arena, having been to 3 SEA Games as an assistant.

Vietnam surpasses 100 gold medals at SEA Games 31

As of the evening of May 17, the Vietnamese sports delegation has officially surpassed the 100 Gold Medal mark at theSEA Games 31.

On May 17, the Vietnamese sports delegation continued to achieve impressive results with 16 more Gold Medals. The start of the medal rain was shooter Tran Quoc Cuong, who won the Gold Medal in the men's 50m pistol event. Then, in the Canoeing event, Nguyen Thi Huong also excellently won the Gold Medal in the women's 1,000m single with a time of 5 minutes 0 seconds 752.

Athlete Manh Hung won the gold medal in the 67kg category of Wrestling. Photo: vietnamplus.vn

In the men's and women's rapid singles of Chess, husband and wife chess players Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son and Pham Le Thao Nguyen together brought home two more Gold Medals after the final matches. In athletics, Quach Thi Lan (women's 400m hurdles) and Nguyen Linh Na (women's 7-event heptathlon) also stood on the highest podium with outstanding achievements.

The most impressive competition on May 17 was the Vietnamese wrestling team. The wrestlers won 6 gold medals, belonging to Bui Tien Hai, Manh Hung, Nguyen Ba Son, Nghiem Dinh Hieu, Nguyen Minh Hieu and Ha Van Hieu. After that, the gold medals were won by Nguyen Van Lai (Athletics), Truong Thi Kim Tuyen (Taekwondo), Bac Thi Khiem (Taekwondo), Kim Son, Huy Hoang, Quy Phuoc, and Hung Nguyen (swimming).

In total, the Vietnamese sports delegation has won 104 gold medals to date, thereby maintaining the No. 1 position on the medal tally at the 31st SEA Games.

Thailand U23 coach fears Indonesia more than Vietnam U23

Sharing with reporters at a press conference on May 17, Thailand U23 coach Alexandre Polking revealed that he was more afraid of Indonesia U23 than the host Vietnam U23.

“We are not concerned.U23 Vietnambut worried about the 4-hour travel distance to Phu Tho and not being familiar with the field if facing them in the semi-finals. U23 Indonesia is the strongest team in the tournament this year," coach Alexandre Polking worried when talking about his opponent in the semi-finals.

The 46-year-old strategist is concerned about the increasingly positive performance of U23 Indonesia. Coach Shin Tae Yong and his team lost to U23 Vietnam in the first match but they played convincingly in the remaining 3 matches. U23 Indonesia scored 11 goals in the last 3 matches. They conceded only 2 goals during this time.

Coach Alexandre Polking of Thailand U23 answers reporters. Photo: Van Dat/VNA

Thailand U23 has 1 more goal than its opponent, scored the most goals in the group stage and only conceded 2 goals against Malaysia U23. The problem of Indonesia U23's improved form is a headache for the young team of the Golden Temple. Not to mention, coach Shin Tae Yong is very experienced and understands coach Polking very well after what happened at the AFF Cup 2021.

According to coach Polking, Mr. Shin Tae Yong owns a strong, young squad with more experience than U23 Thailand. In fact, Mr. Polking only has the biggest stars such as Weerathep, Worachit, Kawin or Ekanit Panya. However, they are only reserve players in the Thai team, completely different from the squad that almost won the Silver Medal of AFF Cup 2021 of U23 Indonesia.

The speed of the wingers on the U23 Indonesia side and the goal-scoring ability of Maulana and Sulaeman will make U23 Thailand worry. Compared to the loss to U23 Vietnam, the return of the Indonesian captain at the AFF Cup 2021 like Asnawi Bahar makes coach Polking even more tired.

Viet Tri Stadium ensures standards for U23 Vietnam's semi-final match

The representative of the Management Board of Phu Tho Provincial Sports Complex said: After 10 consecutive days of competing in the qualifying round of Group A of the 31st SEA Games men's football with 10 consecutive matches, including the final match between the U23 Vietnam team and the Timor Leste team (May 15), up to now, the entire surface system of Viet Tri Stadium is still quite good, ensuring enough standards to serve the semi-final match between the U23 Vietnam team and the Malaysian team taking place at 7:00 p.m. on May 19.

“On May 18, we continued to spray water on the entire field, at the same time, planted additional grass in areas with little grass, repainted the field lines and checked all the concavities and bumps of the field, promptly handled them, and best served the semi-final match on the evening of May 19 between the host team U23 Vietnam and the Malaysian team…”, a representative of the Management Board of the Phu Tho Provincial Sports Complex shared more.

Viet Tri Stadium uses Bermuda grass originating from Thailand. The grass has thin stems, strong roots and is carefully cared for by the Phu Tho Provincial Sports Complex Management Board. The field uses an automatic irrigation system and is often watered before the teams compete.

Spectators at Viet Tri Stadium cheer for the Vietnam U23 team on May 13. Illustrative photo: Minh Quyet/VNA

After each match, the Management Board of Phu Tho Provincial Sports Complex mobilizes technical staff and machinery to take care of the grass to ensure the next matches.

In addition, thanks to modern equipment, proper care and maintenance techniques, the quality of the field after 10 consecutive matches is still guaranteed as before. The coaches of the 5 teams in Group A are very satisfied with the playing field in Viet Tri.