Southeast Asia Thailand

FA Cup Serves Up Buriram and Chiangrai Rematch

Thai League giants Chiangrai United and Buriram United faced another round of cup semi-finals after just seven days, when the two sides took on Ratchaburi and Sisaket respectively on Wednesday in the Chang FA Cup.

Buriram came into this game off the back of sealing the Thai League title with a 2-0 win over Police Tero at the weekend, after losing in the League Cup’s penultimate stage to Bangkok Glass. Their northern opponents, however, were looking to qualify for a second domestic cup final this season.

Chiangrai were once again under the floodlights at the iconic Supachalasai Stadium to take on Ratchaburi. With survival in the Thai League their main priority, the Dragons made the somewhat disappointing decision to rest key members of their squad with one eye on the clash against Police Tero coming up this Sunday.

The defending cup holders didn’t waste this opportunity and dominated proceedings for the opening stages. After numerous chances went begging, the deadlock was finally broken when Ratchaburi struck against the run of play courtesy of a goal from Korean forward Kang Soo-Il, with Chiangrai defender Victor Cardozo getting the decisive touch to turn the ball into his own net.

However, the side would strike back, scoring just two minutes from time as Sarawut Inpan headed home from a corner. As the game dragged on into extra time, it appeared more and more inevitable that the Beetles would find a winner. With momentum firmly on their side, the goal finally came in the 111th minute as William Henrique found the net from another well-worked set-piece routine to send Chiangrai into the FA Cup final for the second consecutive year. Former Ratchaburi forward Bill Amancio added a third against his former club in stoppage time to put the result beyond doubt.

Meanwhile, Buriram expected a far easier game against second division side Sisaket. Filipino forward Javier Patino opened the scoring after just 12 minutes, as the newly crowned Champions made the most of their early dominance. They were caught off-guard by an equalizer from their regional rivals, but a towering header from center back Pansa Hemviboon re-established the lead, sealing a result which offers the kings of the league a chance to add to their trophy cabinet.