By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Kaya FC-Iloilo capped off their three-match home game stretch with a thrilling 1-1 draw against the Manila Digger FC, 1-1, in the ongoing Philippines Football League (PFL) on April 5, 2025, at the Iloilo Sports Complex.
Despite marching into battle with only 10 men inside the pitch, Kaya FC-Iloilo managed to hold their ground against the visiting squad’s high-octane attack and banked on their defensive collective effort to stay at the top of the PFL standings.
A win could’ve sealed Iloilo to another PFL title, but Manila’s equalizing goal seconds before the first half concluded spoiled their early championship aspirations.
The home team got what they wanted as the football-savvy Ilonggo fans flocked to the Iloilo Sports Complex despite the scorching heat, delivering the much-needed loud cheers that boosted their morale.
Both squads kicked off the match trading offensive sets after offensive sets but Manila garnered more early attempts due to their aggressiveness in pushing the tempo off several counter-attacks.
The visitors provided an early scare after tallying their third clean attempt in just the first 15 minutes of the match but Kaya FC-Iloilo stunned them with a header from Ernest Barfo that drew first blood.
Barfo, who also scored the lone winning goal for Kaya FC-Iloilo against the Loyola Victorias, continued his heroics with the same move header move off a sweet cross pass from the right side of the pitch.
However, Kaya FC-Iloilo didn’t anticipate a massive counter from Manila as that wake-up call forced them to press the emergency button. After that Barfo goal, the visitors amped up their tempo and turned the match into a one-sided possession game.
With only seconds remaining before the first-half whistle was about to sound, Manila broke Iloilo’s hearts with an equalizer to level at 1-1. The persistent Digger FC pressured the Kaya FC defenders all game long with their relentless attack that was also carried over until the final 45 minutes.
Although Manila dominated the battle of possessions, Kaya FC’s solid defensive backline helped them pull things together. Freddy Cortez, the team’s star goalkeeper, had a performance for the ages after saving four clean attempts from the opposition in the second half.
Cortez’s impressive ground coverage and reflexes frustrated Manila who almost retook the lead with several clean tries but was deflected by Kaya FC’s defensive lynchpin.
Manila desperately tried to add another goal to take over the PFL standings but their final attempt was waved off and was officially called as an offside.
It took some time for the match referees to discuss the call as a steaming Manila coaching staff was in disbelief. Several minutes after the discussion, the three officials re-evaluated the call and stood by their initial offside ruling.
With the draw, Kaya FC-Iloilo remained the no. 1 team in the league with 41 points derived from 13 wins, two draws, and two losses while Manila is only behind by just a point.
