Pattay United left the intimidating atmosphere of the ‘Thunder Castle’ stadium in Buriram last Sunday with their heads held high after securing a well deserved point against the runaway Premier League leaders.
Buriram, who have lost only one match all season, went into the game with a full strength team, having no injuries or suspensions to worry about but they found it difficult to break down a stubborn Pattaya defence that was once again superbly marshaled by Sompob Nilwong.
Pattaya United go on the attack during their match against Buriram PEA FC at the ‘Thunder Castle’ stadium in Buriram, Sunday, August 21. (Photo/Ariyawat Nuamsawat)
The hosts kept knocking at the door however and they were given a glorious chance to break the deadlock 10 minutes before halftime when they were awarded a penalty after Nilwong was harshly judged to have handled in the area.
This however was not to be Buriram’s day and although Frank Ohandza’s penalty was firmly struck, Narit in the Pattaya goal correctly chose to dive to his left and produced a stunning save to turn the ball around the post.
Narit was kept busy during the second half as the league leaders pressed for an opening but Pattaya showed attacking intentions of their own at the other end of the pitch and when a corner kick by Ittipol Poolsap was only partially cleared, the ball fell to Anuwat Inyin whose snap-shot flew just wide of the Buriram goal.
The final whistle signaled a fine result for Pattaya whose form since the second half of the season got underway has shown big signs of improvement. Despite the point, however, the Dolphins still reside in 12th place in the league standings with the team immediately below them, Pichit FC, having two games in hand. United will get the chance to nullify one of these games when they entertain Pichit in their next Premier League fixture on Sept. 11.
The region’s other Premier League sides had a weekend to forget about as Chonburi FC were defeated 1-0 by TTM Pichit and Suzuki Sriracha lost one nil at home to BEC Tero Sasana.
| Thai Premier League Standings (August 22) | ||||||
| Team | P | W | D | L | +/- | Pts. |
| Buriram PEA | 21 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 28 | 50 |
| Muang Thong Utd | 21 | 13 | 5 | 3 | 20 | 44 |
| Chonburi FC | 21 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 23 | 42 |
| Bangkok Glass FC | 21 | 10 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 35 |
| Osotspa M-150 | 21 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 7 | 32 |
| Si Saket FC | 21 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 32 |
| BEC Tero Sasana | 20 | 9 | 2 | 9 | 3 | 29 |
| Thai Port FC | 21 | 8 | 5 | 8 | -1 | 29 |
| Chiangrai United | 21 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 27 |
| Police FC | 20 | 7 | 6 | 7 | -3 | 27 |
| Army United | 21 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 25 |
| Pattaya United | 21 | 6 | 7 | 8 | -2 | 25 |
| TTM Phichit | 19 | 6 | 5 | 8 | -4 | 23 |
| SCG Samut Songkhram | 21 | 4 | 9 | 8 | -9 | 21 |
| Navy FC | 21 | 5 | 5 | 11 | -20 | 20 |
| Sriracha FC | 21 | 4 | 6 | 11 | -11 | 18 |
| Khon Kaen FC | 21 | 4 | 4 | 13 | -22 | 16 |
| TOT SC | 21 | 5 | 1 | 15 | -23 | 16 |
| Results: Osotspa M-150 Saraburi 1-0 Bangkok Glass FC, TOT SC 1-3 Muang Thong Utd, TTM Phichit 1-0 Chonburi FC, SCG Samut Songkhram 1-1 Police FC, Navy FC 2-1 Khon Kaen FC, Army United 0-1 Thai Port FC, Buriram PEA 0-0 Pattaya United, Si Saket FC 0-0 Chiangrai United. | ||||||
