I bet that is for another match. You can see the highlight in this link and the stadium looks empty to me. You can see the empty seats in front rows. https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=25&v=-c5Ir3pH7MM and this is the whole match. https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=5512&v=qW9fEBJuuls
I see. Well impressive attendance in the past then. If they do well in the league as well as the ACL, I am sure the fans will come back.
Iain Ramsay was also given man of the match honors on his debut based on fan voting(68%): https://instagram.com/p/6GHvC9iHpd/
Good luck to him. He should know this is temp glory so he might keep his consistency. From my experience I can tell you Tractor fans are like English fans very loud and football crazy! One day you're loved the other day you are their worst enemy, and there is no middle ground.
Not Ramsay related, but just wanted to congratulate Fil Australian Jason Day for winning his first major yesterday, the US PGA Championship in record fashion, at 20 under par.
"Ramsay says Iranian footballers are not quite as fit as their Australian counterparts but he feels they are technically excellent."
Azkals midfielder Iain Ramsay felt right at home with his teammates on his return to Manila in time for the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. Ramsay, who was scintillating in his first three games for the Azkals, was the first of the foreign-based Azkals to arrive in the country for the Qualifiers. The midfielder had made his debut against Bahrain last June 11th and scored his first international goal against Yemen last June 16th. “I’m so excited to come back and play the qualifiers,” said Ramsay. “The wins have given me and the team a lot of confidence.” The midfielder initially thought that it might take him at least a few games to jell with his teammates since he just joined the team last June. However, Ramsay quickly settled in with his teammates, particularly with constant roommate Misagh Bahadoran. “We always have a good laugh with my roommate Misagh,” said Ramsay. “(Me and my teammates) jelled together nicely so well. It’s like we have known our selves for a long time already which is very rare, even for club teams.” With the Uzbekistan match looming, Ramsay is ready for the challenge against the top-ranked side in Group H. ‘We’re just so excited to make the nation proud once again,” added Ramsay. “The team feels more comfortable and we just want to make the country and the fans proud.” football.com.ph/iain-ramsay-its-like-weve-known-each-other-for-a-long-time/ http://tiebreakertimes.com/tbt/committed-ramsay-savours-moment-azkals/35125 It took a long time for Iain Ramsay to decide about suiting up for the Philippine Men’s National Football Team but the length of his decision-making process is inversely proportional to the length of his appreciation of becoming one of the Azkals. Quickly emerging as an integral character to Dooley’s squad, the Filipino-Australian winger revealed his delight in representing the Philippines ahead of the huge clash against Uzbekistan tomorrow. “I told Coach Dooley and [team manager] Dan Palami when I make the decision to play for the Philippines, I’ll be fully committed. I’ve never looked back since. I’ve enjoyed every moment,” the Tractor Sazi midfielder disclosed. So far, his enthusiasm in donning the Azkals’ jersey has been reflected nicely on the field. Ramsay played a big role in steering the Philippines to three straight wins, often providing the much-needed flair and creativity down the flanks. Concerns about team chemistry were brewing when he and three others walked into the squad, but Ramsay thinks that they have gelled really well and the pleasing start is evidence to that. Currently, the left winger has a goal and an assist to his name in the two matches against Bahrain and Yemen. Whilst enjoying the occasion of scoring a goal for the Philippines, Ramsay insists that it would be fine if he does not find the back of the net for as long as somebody else does. “I just want to do my best I can to help the team and at the end of the day, we’re fighting for the same goal. We don’t really care who scores in the team as long as we do the job, come away with three points to make sure we qualify,” he stressed. Amongst the things he liked so far in his brief but meaningful stint with the Azkals is the overwhelming support of the crowd. “You know, the fans, they make the difference. When they turn out in numbers, they give the team confidence and the extra adrenaline push in the game to ensure that we come away with the victory. I’m hoping they help us again,” Ramsay uttered. A stern test is on deck for him and the rest of the squad who are bound to host a traditional Asian football powerhouse in Uzbekistan. The Central Asians are currently ranked 75, and have been just a step or two short in earning chances to qualify in previous World Cup Qualifiers. Tomorrow’s match will also go down in the history of Philippine football regardless of the result as it would be the highest-ever opposition the Azkals will face in terms of FIFA rankings. As they aim to nab their fourth win in a row, Ramsay acknowledges the difficulty of toppling the upcoming opposition. “We probably have the hardest coming up against Uzbekistan, a strong outfit. We cannot underestimate them,” he remarked. Judging by their recent form, many would think that Uzbekistan hasn’t lived up yet to their seeding. After losing against North Korea in their first match, they scraped past Yemen last Thursday in Tashkent. The Azkals, meanwhile, took the scalp of Bahrain and Yemen in convincing fashion. Nonetheless, Uzbekistan possesses the quality to endanger the Philippines’ chances of advancing to the next stage of the qualifiers. Now on the back of a win, the Uzbeks perhaps could get their qualifying campaign running with another positive result at the expense of the Philippines. Dedicated to avoid such scenario, the Azkals are eyeing to claim their fourth win in a row. Ramsay is, of course, no exception. “We’ve got off to a great start and I’ve been very happy to be a part of that and I want to continue this success,” the 26 year-old said.
We cheer for Misagh! Don't underestimate Uzbeks ever. They have great potentials. On their best day they can even beat Japan, South Korea or Iran.
No chance of that. As Coach Dooley said, we are the underdog (Uzbekistan is ranked 50 places ahead of us in the FIFA rankings) so nobody expects us to win. The pressure is all on Uzbekistan. It is a great position to be in. “We are totally the underdogs and we have nothing to lose. They have to win against us. For us, we just have to play a great game, fight and play the way we want to and in football anything is possible,” said Dooley. “We know what Uzbekistan has to offer but with the players we have, we also know what we can offer. If we do our jobs right, we play well, then we can pull an upset,” said Younghusband. Hopefully Misagh scores again.
Interesting move to play for Tractor, I wonder how many Australians (sorry Filipinos) have played in the Iranian top flight? Best of luck to Iain, I thought when he first came onto the scene he was going to be something special but he never really lived up to his early hype. A good solid player, who I hope can make the most of his move to Tractor and the Azkals. Does he know any Filipino?
Iain has had a Filipino passport since he was 12 y/o. He could have played earlier for the Philippines, but was waiting for a callup from Australia, as he was considered a promising player when he was younger and excelled in the A league. He was invited earlier by the PFF, but he said he wanted to be 100 % committed before joining the Azkals. As he mentioned in interviews, he has been following, watching and rooting for the Azkals for a long time, so he knew what he was getting into. Like most of our players born abroad(unlike Australia, only those with Filipino parent/s are allowed to join the team) they have been exposed to varying degrees to the culture, tradition, cuisine and language of the Philippines and I am sure can speak a few words. Some are more fluent than others. As some of them have mentioned, they can't help but identify themselves as Filipinos, as they have been constantly reminded of that fact since childhood not only by their relatives, but also by the citizens of their adopted homeland. I am not sure if he is the first Australian to play in Iran, but he was told that Iranian clubs have been monitoring Australia for potential recruits, so he probably won't be the last.
Iain is not the first player from the A league to join the Iranian Premier League though. Former A-league star Sergio Van Dijk(from the Netherlands) played for Sepahan before him. I think he talked to Sergio before making this move.
Yeah Australian players that live and grow up in Australia are usually targeted for the national teams, irrespective of where they were born. Ramsay is definitely a interesting breed. Dad was Scottish, Mum was Filipino and he was born and raised in Australia. He could have represented three different nations, although Australia was his first choice but never featured in any of the youth national teams and never really even got close to the senior national team. So I think career wise it was a smart choice by him to agree to play for the Philippines NT, and getting signed by Tractor seems to show that it has already paid dividends for his career. Best of luck Iain, I hope that you can get back to your exciting best (i.e. his Adelaide United days).
Congratulations again to Filipino Australian Jason Day for winning his 7th US PGA tour victory and for taking over the world #1 Golf ranking. I watched and cheered him live while he was winning the BMW championship earlier today here in the Chicago suburbs. http://www.rappler.com/sports/by-sport/other-sports/106577-jason-day-top-ranking Fil-Aussie golfer Jason Day earns world number one ranking Jason Day claimed his seventh USPGA Tour victory on Sunday to take over the world number one ranking