Stallion-Laguna and newcomer Dynamic Herb Cebu dispute the top spot in Group A on Wednesday, Nov. 10 in the Copa Paulino Alcantara at the PFF National Training Centre in Carmona, Cavite.
The Horsemen and the debuting club from the Queen City of the South face off at 7:30 p.m. in a match that will determine the seedings in the semifinals of the country’s domestic cup competition.
Kaya-Iloilo, which opened the Copa with a 2-0 win over the Azkals Development Team last Sunday, aims to book a place in the semis and the top spot in Group B against Mendiola FC 1991 in the 4 p.m. opener.
Mendiola will come in determine to win its first major trophy to cap off the club’s 30th anniversary.
Both Stallion and Cebu are assured of berths in the knockout stage after last year’s Philippines Football League champion United City decided to pull out of the competition at the last minute.
The two sides can end up with a draw, which would create a complicated scenario on how the top spot can be determined.
But the Copa format calls for the tiebreaker to be determined by the lowest number of red cards accumulated, lowest number of yellow cards or through a coin toss.
Other tiebreakers like goal difference, goals scored, points accumulated in matches between the teams concerned and highest goal difference in matches between teams concerned are not applicable.
Stallion added 16 new players to join 11 holdovers in a bid to bounce back from a last-place finish in last season’s PFL.
Cebu is out to make a splash in its first appearance in top-flight football with a roster that includes familiar names like Spanish veteran Joaco Canas, Daniel Gadia, Ace Villanueva and Kintaro Miyagi.