After battling several setbacks in the group stages, the Eaglets beat four Indonesian squads to gain a chance to battle a taller, heftier, tougher Australian side in the gold-medal match.
After trading blows with almost equal possession between them, Arby Soller drew a foul inside the penalty box. Then, Diego Tagarda, who has yet to fully recover from an injury, finished the play with a smooth penalty shot from the left corner to seal his fifth international goal of the tournament.
The Eaglets hung tough, staving off the relentless attacks by the Aussies en route to sealing the 1-0 victory.
Incidentally, the title match took place simultaneously with the 16U women’s division title game, allowing the Philippine squad to hold a double celebration, where they displayed the Ateneo spirit of teamwork and playing with pride and honor.