North Korea have won the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup, which is designed to be a competition for the lowest-ranked national teams in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and which was held in Nepal. The Chollima defeated Turkmenistan 2:1 in the 2012 final of the fourth edition of the tournament after falling behind to an early Berdimyrat Şamyradow goal (scored after just two minutes), which was wiped out by an Jong Il-Gwan equaliser ten minutes before half-time.
The North Koreans, who were defending the trophy they had won for the first time in 2010, won the match courtesy of a Jang Song-Hyok penalty in the 87th minute, and thus qualified for the next edition of the Asian Cup, which will be held in Australia in January 2015. For Turkmenistan, it was a case of déjà vu; they also ended the 2010 edition (hosted by Sri Lanka) as runners-up to the North Koreans, losing 5:4 on penalties after extra-time finished one-all.
The AFC Challenge Cup is contested by the Asian confederation's so-called "emerging" national teams (as the AFC describes them), which comprises of the AFC's 17 lowest-ranked teams; however, several countries from that the AFC calls "developing nations" (second-level national teams) and even one or two from the AFC's "mature (developed) nations" (i.e. those in the top echelons of Asian football), such as North Korea, regularly take part in the competition. They are, according to the "AFC Challenge Cup Regulations & Guidelines", "invited to participate at the discretion of the AFC."
The 2012 competition, involved 20 teams in all, including 4 which were eliminated following a series of two-leg qualifying play-offs, which took place in February and March last year, and 16 teams which took part in four qualifying groups, which were completed by April last year. (Out of those AFC member countries eligible to compete, Brunei Darussalam, Guam and East Timor (Timor-Leste) did not enter the competition.)
Back to the finals of the competition now, and in the third-place play-off, the Philippines defeated Palestine by 4 goals to 3 in a ding-dong 90 minutes of football, thanks to a brace from the final tournament's top-scorer, Phil Younghusband, and the Guirado brothers, Juan and Ángel, also scored a goal apiece. Phil Younghusband scored 6 goals during the final stages of the competition; his older brother James is also part of the Azkals' set-up.
Palestine's goals, meanwhile, were scored by Abdelhamid Abuhabib, who also scored twice, and Fahed Attal. As a result of the appearance of both teams in the third-place match, the Philippines and Palestine achieved their best-ever international successes. The Philippines were ranked among the weakest of all the nations taking part in the AFC Challenge Cup, and only just squeaked through their preliminary round tie against Mongolia, winning 3:2 on aggregate; this makes their achievements all the more praiseworthy.
The fine performances of the Azkals and Palestine were in marked contrast with those of Nepal, the hosts, and India. Sadly, although India stormed through the qualifiers, neither they nor Nepal scored a goal during the finals, and both teams finished pointless and bottom of their groups. India's lack of achievement at international level, even with the I-league system entering its fifth season and apparently in fine fettle, remains a worry.
The results for every match played in the competition, including the qualifying campaign, which was completed last year, are below. The matches which took place during the finaltournament were played at two stadiums in Kathmandu, the national stadium - the Dasarath Rangasala Stadium (abbreviated below to DRS) - and the Halchowk Stadium (HS), also known as the APF Ground.
PRELIMINARY ROUND (PRE-QUALIFYING PLAY-OFFS)
FIRST LEG
9/2/11 Philippines 2:0 Mongolia
9/2/11 Cambodia 3:1 Macau
10/2/11 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) 5:2 Laos
23/3/11 Bhutan 0:3 Afghanistan
SECOND LEG
16/2/11 Laos 1:1 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei)
TAIWAN 6:3 ON AGG.
16/2/11 Macau 3:2 Cambodia AET
CAMBODIA 5:4 ON AGG.
15/3/11 Mongolia 2:1 Philippines
PHILIPPINES 3:2 ON AGG.
25/3/11 Afghanistan 2:0 Bhutan
AFGHANISTAN 5:0 ON AGG.
QUALIFYING ROUND
GROUP A
21/3/11 Burma (Myanmar) 1:1 Philippines
21/3/11 Palestine 2:0 Bangladesh
23/3/11 Philippines 0:0 Palestine
23/3/11 Bangladesh 2:0 Burma (Myanmar)
25/3/11 Burma (Myanmar) 1:3 Palestine
25/3/11 Bangladesh 0:3 Philippines
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GD
PALESTINE 3/2/1/0/5/1/7/+4
PHILIPPINES 3/1/2/1/4/1/5/+3
Bangladesh 3/1/0/2/2/5/3/-3
Burma (Myanmar) 3/0/1/2/2/6/1/-4
GROUP B
21/3/11 Turkmenistan 3:0 Pakistan
21/3/11 India 3:0 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei)
23/3/11 Pakistan 1:3 India
23/3/11 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) 0:2 Turkmenistan
25/3/11 Turkmenistan 1:1 India
25/3/11 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) 0:2 Pakistan
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GD
INDIA 3/2/1/0/7/2/7/+5
TURKMENISTAN 3/2/1/0/6/1/7/+5
Pakistan 3/1/0/2/3/6/3/-3
Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) 3/0/0/3/0/7/1/-7
GROUP C
21/3/11 Tajikistan 1:0 Kyrgyzstan
21/3/11 Maldives 4:0 Cambodia
23/3/11 Kyrgyzstan 1:2 Maldives
23/3/11 Cambodia 0:3 Tajikistan
25/3/11 Tajikistan 0:0 Maldives
25/3/11 Cambodia 3:4 Kyrgyzstan
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GD
MALDIVES 3/2/1/0/6/1/7/+5
TURKMENISTAN 3/2/1/0/4/0/7/+4
Pakistan 3/1/0/2/5/6/3/-1
Cambodia 3/0/0/3/3/11/0/-8
GROUP D
7/4/11 North Korea 4:0 Sri Lanka
7/4/11 Afghanistan 0:1 Nepal
9/4/11 Nepal 0:1 North Korea
9/4/11 Sri Lanka 0:1 Afghanistan
11/4/11 Nepal 0:0 Sri Lanka
11/4/11 North Korea 2:0 Afghanistan
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GD
NORTH KOREA 3/3/0/0/7/0/9/+7
NEPAL 3/1/1/1/1/1/4/+0
Afghanistan 3/1/0/2/1/3/3/-2
Sri Lanka 3/0/1/2/0/5/1/-5
FINALS TOURNAMENT
GROUP A
8/3/12 Turkmenistan 3:1 Maldives (HS)
8/3/12 Nepal 0:2 Palestine (DRS)
10/3/12 Palestine 0:0 Turkmenistan (HS)
10/3/12 Maldives 1:0 Nepal (DRS)
12/3/12 Nepal 0:3 Turkmenistan (DRS)
12/3/12 Maldives 0:2 Palestine (HS)
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GDTURKMENISTAN 3/2/1/0/6/1/7/+5
PALESTINE 3/2/1/0/4/0/7/+4
Maldives 3/1/0/2/2/5/3/-3
Nepal 3/0/0/3/0/6/1/-6
GROUP B
9/3/12 North Korea 2:0 Philippines (HS)
9/3/12 India 0:2 Tajikistan (DRS)
11/3/12 Tajikistan 0:2 North Korea (HS)
11/3/12 Philippines 2:0 India (DRS)
13/3/12 North Korea 4:0 India (DRS)
13/3/12 Tajikistan 1:2 Philippines (HS)
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GDNORTH KOREA 3/3/0/0/8/0/9/+8
PHILIPPINES 3/2/1/0/4/3/6/+1
Tajikistan 3/1/0/2/3/4/3/-1
India 3/0/0/3/0/8/1/-8
SEMI-FINALS
16/3/12 Turkmenistan 2:1 Philippines (DRS)
16/3/12 North Korea 2:0 Palestine (DRS)
THIRD-PLACE PLAY-OFF
19/3/12 Philippines 4:3 Palestine (DRS)
FINAL
19/3/12 Turkmenistan 1:2 North Korea (DRS)
AFC CHALLENGE CUP WINNERS
2006: Tajikistan (Runners-up: Sri Lanka)
2008: India (Runners-up: Tajikistan)
2010: North Korea (Runners-up: Turkmenistan)
2012: North Korea (Runners-up: Turkmenistan)
The North Koreans, who were defending the trophy they had won for the first time in 2010, won the match courtesy of a Jang Song-Hyok penalty in the 87th minute, and thus qualified for the next edition of the Asian Cup, which will be held in Australia in January 2015. For Turkmenistan, it was a case of déjà vu; they also ended the 2010 edition (hosted by Sri Lanka) as runners-up to the North Koreans, losing 5:4 on penalties after extra-time finished one-all.
The AFC Challenge Cup is contested by the Asian confederation's so-called "emerging" national teams (as the AFC describes them), which comprises of the AFC's 17 lowest-ranked teams; however, several countries from that the AFC calls "developing nations" (second-level national teams) and even one or two from the AFC's "mature (developed) nations" (i.e. those in the top echelons of Asian football), such as North Korea, regularly take part in the competition. They are, according to the "AFC Challenge Cup Regulations & Guidelines", "invited to participate at the discretion of the AFC."
The 2012 competition, involved 20 teams in all, including 4 which were eliminated following a series of two-leg qualifying play-offs, which took place in February and March last year, and 16 teams which took part in four qualifying groups, which were completed by April last year. (Out of those AFC member countries eligible to compete, Brunei Darussalam, Guam and East Timor (Timor-Leste) did not enter the competition.)
Back to the finals of the competition now, and in the third-place play-off, the Philippines defeated Palestine by 4 goals to 3 in a ding-dong 90 minutes of football, thanks to a brace from the final tournament's top-scorer, Phil Younghusband, and the Guirado brothers, Juan and Ángel, also scored a goal apiece. Phil Younghusband scored 6 goals during the final stages of the competition; his older brother James is also part of the Azkals' set-up.
Palestine's goals, meanwhile, were scored by Abdelhamid Abuhabib, who also scored twice, and Fahed Attal. As a result of the appearance of both teams in the third-place match, the Philippines and Palestine achieved their best-ever international successes. The Philippines were ranked among the weakest of all the nations taking part in the AFC Challenge Cup, and only just squeaked through their preliminary round tie against Mongolia, winning 3:2 on aggregate; this makes their achievements all the more praiseworthy.
The fine performances of the Azkals and Palestine were in marked contrast with those of Nepal, the hosts, and India. Sadly, although India stormed through the qualifiers, neither they nor Nepal scored a goal during the finals, and both teams finished pointless and bottom of their groups. India's lack of achievement at international level, even with the I-league system entering its fifth season and apparently in fine fettle, remains a worry.
The results for every match played in the competition, including the qualifying campaign, which was completed last year, are below. The matches which took place during the finaltournament were played at two stadiums in Kathmandu, the national stadium - the Dasarath Rangasala Stadium (abbreviated below to DRS) - and the Halchowk Stadium (HS), also known as the APF Ground.
PRELIMINARY ROUND (PRE-QUALIFYING PLAY-OFFS)
FIRST LEG
9/2/11 Philippines 2:0 Mongolia
9/2/11 Cambodia 3:1 Macau
10/2/11 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) 5:2 Laos
23/3/11 Bhutan 0:3 Afghanistan
SECOND LEG
16/2/11 Laos 1:1 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei)
TAIWAN 6:3 ON AGG.
16/2/11 Macau 3:2 Cambodia AET
CAMBODIA 5:4 ON AGG.
15/3/11 Mongolia 2:1 Philippines
PHILIPPINES 3:2 ON AGG.
25/3/11 Afghanistan 2:0 Bhutan
AFGHANISTAN 5:0 ON AGG.
QUALIFYING ROUND
GROUP A
21/3/11 Burma (Myanmar) 1:1 Philippines
21/3/11 Palestine 2:0 Bangladesh
23/3/11 Philippines 0:0 Palestine
23/3/11 Bangladesh 2:0 Burma (Myanmar)
25/3/11 Burma (Myanmar) 1:3 Palestine
25/3/11 Bangladesh 0:3 Philippines
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GD
PALESTINE 3/2/1/0/5/1/7/+4
PHILIPPINES 3/1/2/1/4/1/5/+3
Bangladesh 3/1/0/2/2/5/3/-3
Burma (Myanmar) 3/0/1/2/2/6/1/-4
GROUP B
21/3/11 Turkmenistan 3:0 Pakistan
21/3/11 India 3:0 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei)
23/3/11 Pakistan 1:3 India
23/3/11 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) 0:2 Turkmenistan
25/3/11 Turkmenistan 1:1 India
25/3/11 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) 0:2 Pakistan
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GD
INDIA 3/2/1/0/7/2/7/+5
TURKMENISTAN 3/2/1/0/6/1/7/+5
Pakistan 3/1/0/2/3/6/3/-3
Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) 3/0/0/3/0/7/1/-7
GROUP C
21/3/11 Tajikistan 1:0 Kyrgyzstan
21/3/11 Maldives 4:0 Cambodia
23/3/11 Kyrgyzstan 1:2 Maldives
23/3/11 Cambodia 0:3 Tajikistan
25/3/11 Tajikistan 0:0 Maldives
25/3/11 Cambodia 3:4 Kyrgyzstan
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GD
MALDIVES 3/2/1/0/6/1/7/+5
TURKMENISTAN 3/2/1/0/4/0/7/+4
Pakistan 3/1/0/2/5/6/3/-1
Cambodia 3/0/0/3/3/11/0/-8
GROUP D
7/4/11 North Korea 4:0 Sri Lanka
7/4/11 Afghanistan 0:1 Nepal
9/4/11 Nepal 0:1 North Korea
9/4/11 Sri Lanka 0:1 Afghanistan
11/4/11 Nepal 0:0 Sri Lanka
11/4/11 North Korea 2:0 Afghanistan
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GD
NORTH KOREA 3/3/0/0/7/0/9/+7
NEPAL 3/1/1/1/1/1/4/+0
Afghanistan 3/1/0/2/1/3/3/-2
Sri Lanka 3/0/1/2/0/5/1/-5
FINALS TOURNAMENT
GROUP A
8/3/12 Turkmenistan 3:1 Maldives (HS)
8/3/12 Nepal 0:2 Palestine (DRS)
10/3/12 Palestine 0:0 Turkmenistan (HS)
10/3/12 Maldives 1:0 Nepal (DRS)
12/3/12 Nepal 0:3 Turkmenistan (DRS)
12/3/12 Maldives 0:2 Palestine (HS)
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GDTURKMENISTAN 3/2/1/0/6/1/7/+5
PALESTINE 3/2/1/0/4/0/7/+4
Maldives 3/1/0/2/2/5/3/-3
Nepal 3/0/0/3/0/6/1/-6
GROUP B
9/3/12 North Korea 2:0 Philippines (HS)
9/3/12 India 0:2 Tajikistan (DRS)
11/3/12 Tajikistan 0:2 North Korea (HS)
11/3/12 Philippines 2:0 India (DRS)
13/3/12 North Korea 4:0 India (DRS)
13/3/12 Tajikistan 1:2 Philippines (HS)
P/W/D/L/GF/GA/PTS/GDNORTH KOREA 3/3/0/0/8/0/9/+8
PHILIPPINES 3/2/1/0/4/3/6/+1
Tajikistan 3/1/0/2/3/4/3/-1
India 3/0/0/3/0/8/1/-8
SEMI-FINALS
16/3/12 Turkmenistan 2:1 Philippines (DRS)
16/3/12 North Korea 2:0 Palestine (DRS)
THIRD-PLACE PLAY-OFF
19/3/12 Philippines 4:3 Palestine (DRS)
FINAL
19/3/12 Turkmenistan 1:2 North Korea (DRS)
AFC CHALLENGE CUP WINNERS
2006: Tajikistan (Runners-up: Sri Lanka)
2008: India (Runners-up: Tajikistan)
2010: North Korea (Runners-up: Turkmenistan)
2012: North Korea (Runners-up: Turkmenistan)
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