Hong Kong has bagged a significant three points on the Group A leaderboard by winning 3-1 against Laos in Friday’s opening match of the 2018 Asian Games soccer competition.

Meanwhile, Palestine versus Chinese Taipei ended 0-0 in a later match.

The round-robin matches in Group A, which includes Indonesia, are being held at the Patriot Candrabaga Stadium in Bekasi, on the outskirts of Jakarta.

Palestine coach Ayman Sandouq blamed fatigue for the scoreless draw against Chinese Taipei.

“We were too tired. We’re not satisfied with what we did today [Friday],” said Sandouq, as translated by Palestine midfielder Mohamed Roshid, in a post-match interview.

“We will make things work. This is not the end for us; this is just the beginning,” he added.

After the victory over Laos, Hong Kong coach Kwok Kar Lok Kenneth said he was happy to see his boys nail the three points in the leaderboard.

“We will have more opportunities to win in future matches, because we’re a prepared team,” said Kwok, as quoted by news agency Antara, adding that his team planned to maintain the
good trend.

Indonesia will begin its Asian Games journey on Sunday with a match against Chinese Taipei at 7 p.m. at the Patriot stadium. In the afternoon match, Palestine will play against Laos.

Indonesia will be powered by its best players, including Gavin Kwan Adsit, Hansamu Yama Pranata and Evan Dimas Darmono.

Hong Kong’s striker Cheng Hin Lung set the standard by producing the first goal for his team in the 19th minute of Friday’s match — after several failed attempts. Lung, who wore number 7, took advantage of a loose ball in front of Laos’ goalkeeper Paseuth Saymanolynh.

Tan Chun Lok scored the second goal for Hong Kong in the 40th minute, clearing the way for his team to continue its domination over Laos.

In the second half, Laos tried to pick up what might it had left, producing some scares for the leading team.

Kongmathilath Phitack found a loophole in the 61st to steal a score for Laos.

In the 85th however, Hong Kong solidified its grip on the match by scoring the third goal as a ball shot by Tan bounced off the foot of Laos’ Lathasay Lounlasy and went straight into the net.

Hong Kong takes the lead on the leaderboard with three points, while Laos finds itself at the bottom.

Hong Kong and Laos played in a nearly empty stadium of 30,000 seats, with only a few supporters cheering on their respective teams. However, groups of local students were seen occupying some spots in the bleachers, oddly making chants out of patriotic Indonesian songs.

The group stage will run until Aug. 20. Meanwhile, the final match will be held on Sept. 1 at Pakansari Stadium in Bogor, West Java.

Off the pitch, technical glitches on the first day of the Games affected transportation services for media representatives, drawing complaints from foreign journalists.

As the Patriot stadium is located some 25 kilometers from the capital, the organizers had prepared a shuttle bus to depart from the main press center at the Jakarta Convention Center in Senayan. The bus is available for journalists on a daily basis, throughout the day.

However, signage for the service was nowhere to be found in the JCC area. Some journalists were also asked to fill in a registration form, which is unusual, as each accredited journalist has a media pass.

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