Football

Việt Nam 2 players and coaches celebrate their tournament victory. Photos courtesy of organisers

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam 2 not only won the championship title, but also secured most of the individual awards at the ASEAN Police Football Open, which wrapped up on July 15 in Hà Nội.

With their remarkable form and strong support from fans, the host side defeated defending champions Cambodia 4-0 in the final match at Hàng Đẫy Stadium.

Nguyễn Nhu Tuấn opened the score in the fifth minute, after Việt Nam's storm of attacks over their visitors.

Then striker Trần Đức Nam made it 2-0 just minutes before the interval. 

A break of more than 10 minutes did not help Cambodia find a solution to fight back.

They conceded two more goals, one in the 68th minute by Vũ Mạnh Duy and another in the 80th minute by Nguyễn Đức Phú.

Along with the title, Việt Nam 2 pocketed US$30,000 as a prize. Nam, who scored eight goals and made several assists, received two individual awards: the Most Valuable Player and the Top Scorer of the tournament.

Players in action in the final match.

Cambodia brought home the silver medal and $15,000. Meanwhile, Timor Leste and Thailand claimed bronze medals and $5,000 each.

Nattawoot Saengdara of Thailand was voted the best goalkeeper.

"The tournament was a great success, leaving a deep impression on each team and each player as well as the large audience," said Major General Phạm Kim Đĩnh, a representative of the organising committee.

"Here we witnessed a spirit of solidarity, friendship, honesty and nobility; many good plays and beautiful goals were shown throughout the tournament. Many domestic and foreign audience members came to the stadium as well as watched on live television and digital platforms, creating a vibrant sporting atmosphere throughout the tournament.

"We acknowledge, thank and show our appreciation for the active participation of teams, supporters and sponsors."

He added: "We hope that the tournament will be an annual activity held in rotation in each country to be a bridge for the regional police forces, connecting and strengthening our cooperation in ensuring security and order and fighting and preventing crimes, especially transnational crimes, as well as contributing to ensuring peace, security, safety, stability and prosperity in the region and the world."

Trần Đức Nam receives the Top Scorer award.

The Open was an activity held to celebrate the 80th Việt Nam People's Public Security Traditional Day and the 20th National Security Day, both on August 19.

The tournament was chaired by the Ministry of Public Security, in coordination with the Việt Nam Football Federation and sponsored by T&T Group and SHB Bank.

“T&T Group believes that the development of enterprises must be closely linked to the development of society. We are honoured to become the main sponsor of the tournament,” said Vice President of T&T Group Đỗ Vinh Quang.

He said this year's tournament brought many exciting, dramatic and competitive matches, especially the final match between Việt Nam 2 and Cambodia.

The tournament was not only a sporting event, but also an opportunity for regional police to exchange, learn, improve their physical strength and experience the culture and landscapes in Việt Nam.

“We hope that in the future, there will be more tournaments organised, creating a meaningful playground for the police-players and contributing to strengthening the relationship between police forces of different countries through sports, a symbol of training spirit, will and progress,” said Vinh. VNS