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Bangkok Post
Bangkok Post
Sport

Polking 'happy' as Thais edge Suriname

Thailand's Bordin Phala reacts after scoring against Suriname.

Thailand coach Mano Polking said he was happy that his men sealed two wins in as many warm-up games after their 1-0 victory over Suriname on Sunday.

Bordin Phala scored the winner after 27 minutes at BG Stadium in Pathum Thani.

It came after the War Elephants defeated Nepal 2-0 in Chon Buri on Thursday.

"We had two happy games," said the Brazilian coach after Sunday's win.

"Everybody did well. The players showed their motivation and passion as well as good teamwork.

"Also, we sent the players back to their clubs without any injury."

Polking added that it was not an easy game as a number of Suriname players play in Europe.

"This was a good test for us, although our performance dropped in the second half. We will have to look into this," he said.

The two warm-up games were part of Thailand's preparations for the AFC Asian Cup qualifying round in Uzbekistan in June.

The War Elephants failed to make it to the 12-team final stage of the Asian World Cup qualifiers which ensured direct entry into the next year's Asian Cup in China.

Polking said Thailand plan to have two warm-up matches in May ahead of the Asian Cup qualifying tournament.

"We want to play teams who are ranked higher than us. As far as I know, one could be Bahrain," he said.

The Football Association of Thailand has yet to confirm the names of the two teams for the warm-up games in May.

Polking said although his team were without several key players including Sarach Yooyen, Chanathip Songkrasin, Teerasil Dangda and Phitiwat Sukjitthummakul, some newcomers proved they are good enough for the national side.

"We saw many new players play in the two matches and many did well," he said.

Suriname coach Stanley Puri Menzo said: "Thailand are a good team. It was interesting to watch Thailand play in the first half. We changed tactics in the second half and did better. We had chances but failed to score."

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