Thailand thrash Cambodia U16s 8-0 in AFC qualifier Friday

LAST week, Cambodian Football Federation spokesman May Tola had predicted the U16 national team would perform admirably in their AFC Championship 2010 qualifiers in Thailand, inspired by the feats of East Timor, who had qualified for the finals for the first time in their history.

However, the Cambodian youngsters were well and truly routed by host nation Thailand, who smashed in an awesome eight with no reply Friday. A hat trick within seven minutes by Prakasit Khamkhong contributed to Thailand’s first-half tally of five.

Three Cambodian defenders were brought on midway through the second half in an attempt to stem the flow of relentless Thai attacks, but they couldn’t prevent Prakasit’s cropping up near the end to grab his fourth, and his team’s eighth.

Cambodia sit bottom of their group, which Thailand top, while North Korea take second place after beating Vietnam 2-1 Friday. Myanmar stunned South Korea with a 1-1 draw.

Nimol, a Cambodian student living in Bangkok, watched the match live at Bangkok’s Royal Thai Army Stadium. He said the Cambodian boys had little to blame themselves for, with the Thai squad holding a significant size advantage.

Nimol also noted that Cambodian goalkeeper Prak Monyphirun was kept extremely busy, with the Thais dominating the possession throughout the game.