The Bhayangkara Cup 2016 is expected to see quality games, entertain and uphold sportsmanship."Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Following the successful implementation of the General Sudirman Cup 2015 soccer tournament which was opened by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) on November 10, 2015, ten soccer clubs joined the Bhayangkara Cup 2016.
The Bhayangkara Cup tournament, which was officially opened by President Jokowi at the Si Jalak Harupat Soreang stadium in Bandung District Thursday (March 17), saw the participation of Arema Cronus, Bali United, Mitra Kukar, and Persib Bandung, in addition to Persija Jakarta, Persipura Jayapura, PS Polri, and PS TNI. The other clubs were Pusamania Borneo FC and Sriwijaya FC.
In the first game, Persib Bandung (champion of the past President Cup, which took place before General Sudirman Cup 2015) played against Mitra Kukar (champion of the General Sudirman Cup tournament) with referee Handri Krisnanto.
The Bhayangkara Cup 2016 began on March 17 and concludes April 3, 2016, with its final match to be held at the Bung Karno main sports stadium in Jakarta.
"The Bhayangkara Cup 2016 is expected to see quality games, entertain and uphold sportsmanship," national police chief General Badrodin Haiti stated recently.
The Bhayangkara Cup 2016, which is held by the national police organizing committee, offers a cash prize of Rp2.5 billion for the champion.
General Badrodin Haiti expressed the hope that the Bhayangkara tournament will be able to yield talented soccer players, help unite the people of the country and improve their level of nationalism.
The Bhayangkara Cup 2016 tournament is divided into group A and group B.
Group A has Sriwijaya FC, Persib Bandung, PS TNI, and Pusamania Borneo, in addition to Mitra Kukar. They played at the Kapten I Wayan Dipta Gianyar in Bali.
Group B comprises Arema Cronus, PS Polri, Persija Jakarta, and Bali United, in addition to Persipura, and they played their matches in Si Jalak Harupat Soreang Kabupaten in Bandung.
In group A, Sriwijaya FC has successfully registered two victories by crushing Pusamania Borneo 3-1, beating PS TNI 2-1, and sharing a 2-2 draw with rival Mitra Kukar.
With seven points, Sriwijaya FC is currently leading group A, followed by Persib Bandung with seven points, PS TNI with three points, Pusamania Borneo also with three points in fourth place, and the Mitra Kukar on two points in last place.
Meanwhile, in the provisional results in group B, Arema Cronus was leading after grabbing seven points.
PS Polri appeared in second place with five points, Persija Jakarta with four points was third, Bali United with three points was fourth, and Persipura Jayapura with two points was last.
Playing at the Kapten I Wayan Dipta Gianyar Friday night, Arema Cronus of East Java defeated Persija Jakarta 1-0 in group B.
Sunarto scored the goal for Arema in the 85th minute through a hard kick to the right of Persijas goalkeeper Andritany.
In the first round, it was actually Persija that was more dominant, attacking the heart of Arema Cronus defense, but they failed to score.
On the other hand, Cristian Gonzales of Arema got a golden opportunity in the 40th minute but his header only hit the Persija crossbar.
Earlier in the day, host Bali United beat rival Persipura Jayapura of Papua Province 1-0.
The single goal for Bali United was scored by Yabes Roni in the 56th minute.
In addition to Arema Cronus, PS Polri which was playing at the Kapten I Wayan Dipta Gianyar in Bali on Saturday (March 19), crushed rival Persija Jakarta 3-0 in the group B.
The first goal was scored by Fabiano through his header in the fifth minute, while Bio Paulin scored the second goal in the 23rd minute.
In the second half, PS Polris player Robertino Gabriel Pangliara created the third goal in the 88th minute.
These talented soccer players, as expected in the results of the Bhayangkara soccer tournament, will hopefully reach the final on April 3, 2016.
At the end of August 2015, the government had organized the President Cup as a professional soccer tournament aimed at resuming soccer as a competitive sport across the country several months after it was stopped.
President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) opened the President Cup Tournament 2015 at the "I Wayan Dipta" Stadium in Gianyar, Bali, on Sunday (August 30), while the President Cup tournament saw participation of 16 soccer clubs.
Following the President Cup tournament, the government held the General Sudirman Cup 2015 soccer tournament which was opened by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) on November 10, 2015.
President Jokowi also opened the soccer event in the Kanjuruhan Stadium in Malang, East Java Tuesday night.
(Uu.B003/INE/KR-BSR/A014)
Reporter: Bustanuddin
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2016
