Asian soccer body blasts Myanmar

Kuala Lumpur:

Asian soccer's governing body criticised Myanmar's national team today for disciplinary woes that marred its Tiger Cup semifinal match against Singapore. The Asian Football Confederation was "disappointed with the poor sportsmanship and the lack of fair play demonstrated in the Singapore-Myanmar match" played in the city-state Sunday, said AFC General Secretary Peter Velappan. "We are ... extremely displeased with the attitude of the players as well as the Myanmar team officials," Velappan said in a statement. Singapore advanced to the Southeast Asian tournament final 8-5 on aggregate after they won the first leg 4-3 Wednesday, and will meet the winners of the Malaysia-Indonesia clash. Indisciplinary behaviour In a 20-minute span, three Myanmar players were sent off for indiscipline by Japanese referee Kamikawa Toru. They included Moe Kyaw Thu, who kicked dirt at the referee in dissent. Reserve keeper Tun Tun Lin was sent off for throwing a water bottle at a Singapore defender. The AFC also asked the ASEAN Football Federation to submit an overall report on the Tiger Cup after being informed of poor security conditions at a Dec. 28, 2004, match in Jakarta between Indonesia and Malaysia, as well as match-fixing allegations during group matches in Vietnam. "We urge you to conduct an investigation into these allegations immediately," Velappan said in a letter to the Southeast Asian soccer organisation. (AP)