The home team had the possession in the first thirty minutes, pushing back the visitors in their own box and eking out half chances. It was Ceres however who opened the scoring when Maranon glanced a free kick from out wide from Stephan Schrock in the 28th minute.
Gabriele Mascazzini had a good opportunity to equalize a minute later but his low strike was saved by Mike Casas. Joshua Grommen had chance of his own moments later but his header was over the bar.
Stallion pushed in the final fifteen of the half with plenty of half chances. Fitch Arboleda had a dangerous incursion in the box that was cleared by Casas. Mascazzini had another outside shot that curled wide. The halftime whistle blew with Ceres-Negros leading with a slim 1-0 lead.
Both teams started well in the second half which produced a tough midfield battle. Mascazzini again attempted from distance in the 55th minute but Casas easily collected the ball.
Omid Nazari had a fine chance in the 58th minute when he volleyed in a sliced clearance to the near post but Benito Rosalia was there for the save.
Nazari had the best chance to double the advantage when a layoff from Fernando Rodriguez allowed him to strike from the edge of the box. His attempt however bounce off the crossbar and out.
It was a flurry in the final fifteen when both teams tried to score goals of their own. Mascazzini had twin chances from a free kick but both were off target. Super Herrera had a chance of a rebound but his shot was just wide of the top corner.
Controversy erupted in the dying minutes when Stallion midfielder Dan Villarico was down in the box after a challenge but the referee allowed continuation of play. The final whistle blew with Ceres-Negros earning the slim one-goal win.
Affter the match, the Ceres Coach lamented the refereeing in the match considering the conditions they have to play. “What can I say? We are all tired already,” said Coach Risto Vidakovic “It happens every game. We cannot talk anymore about football. We have to talk about how to keep the players safe,” Vidakovic added.
Man of the match Stephan Schrock also echoed his coach sentiments. “Like Coach said we have a tough schedule, we play almost back to back. Its hard for us players when the referees are doing bad for both sides,” Schrock added.
The Negros squad will be missing key players in their next match with Stallion on Wednesday. Rodriguez, Maranon, Herrera, and OJ Porteria will be unavailable due to accumulated yellows.
The result pushed Ceres-Negros to 42 points, two wins behind league leaders FC Meralco Manila but with four more games to play.
Congrats Ceres