The Thai National team might have been hoping for a slightly easier draw in the first group stage of 2014 World Cup Qualifying after their heroic 2-2 draw with Palestine last week. Instead Winnie Schaefer’s men find themselves in a group alongside the mighty Australia, as well former-giants Saudia Arabia, and fellow Gulf State, Oman. It’s going to be a tough task to advance with only the top two teams guaranteed a place in the next round. Nevertheless, the home match with Australia is a mouth-watering prospect at a potentially sold-out Rajamangala Stadium. Saudi Arabia might be managed by Frank Rijkaard but they are a shadow of the side that qualified for four consecutive World Cups between 1994 and 2006, and currently sit at their lowest ever FIFA ranking of 92. Thailand met Oman in 2010 World Cup Qualifying at the same stage and narrowly lost both games 1-0 at home and 2-1 away. Oman have fallen roughly 30 ranking places since those matches though and are now 107th in the world – not too far ahead of Thailand. The first match, at home to Oman, is scheduled for September 6th at the Rajamangala and, put it in your diary now, Thailand v Australia is penned in for November 15th.

‘God’ puts in an Appearance
On Tuesday, Kasetsart University of the Regional League Bangkok Division held TPL giants Muangthong United to a highly creditable 2-2 draw at the Thupatemi Stadium in the League Cup last 16. Muangthong, however, edged the first leg 2-1 and so progress to the quarter-finals 4-3 on aggregate. The game was most notable, however, for the competitive debut of one Robert Bernard Fowler. ‘God’ came on in the 58th minute with the score at 2-0 to Muangthong and while he couldn’t increase MTU’s advantage he did hit the post with a left-foot effort and generally looked pretty good. His new side ended the game with ten men for the last ten minutes as Nattaporn Phanrit left the field with exhaustion (attributed mainly to the effects of travel after the national team match in Palestine) and all three subs had already been used.

League Cup Round-up
In the other last 16 fixtures involving BKK clubs, Thai Port put the disappointment of last weekend’s 2-0 defeat to Pattaya in the TPL behind them as they beat Police United 2-0 at the PAT Stadium. The Port Lions wrapped the game up in the first half thanks to an own goal by Police goalkeeper Sompong Yod-ard and a penalty on the stroke of halftime converted by Worawut Wangsawad. Port enhance their reputation as a cup team then, and go into the hat with the likes of Chonburi, MTU and Buriram PEA. BEC Tero Sasana beat Suphanburi 2-0 on Wednesday evening, but that was only the first leg; the second will be played next Wednesday.