The 1999 Title Race

With three teams still in with a shout of winning the league, many are calling this the most exciting title race for years. Here's what happened on the final day of the 1999 season, when four sides finished on equal points.

Air Force crowned champions after thrashing BBC (12/12/99)
Win 10-0 to triumph on goal difference
Tor Chittinand

Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) thrashed bottom-placed Distar-BBC 10-0 at the Hockey Stadium yesterday to win the Caltex Premier League on goal difference from three other clubs, Port Authority, BEC Tero, and Osotsapha.

RTAF, the 1997 Premier League champions, went into the match knowing they needed to beat Distar-BBC by at least seven goals to overhaul Port's superior goal difference.
Distar were ripe for the slaughter having lost 19 of their first 21 matches with the other two being drawn.

It took RTAF just six minutes to open their account through captain Songserm Maperm after a fine pass from Sunai Jaidee. Ten minutes later, Songserm got the second and there were further goals before half-time from Atsawa Singthong (21st), Kanwee Thongsiew (29th) and Worawit Tavornwan (45th).

Despite the 5-0 half-time lead, RTAF head coach Piyapong Pue-Onn was angry with his players for not taking enough chances.

The sixth goal came 45 seconds into the second half when Worawit scored with a 30-metre shot. In the 51st minute Worawit completed his hat-trick with a header which made it 7-0.
Ten minutes later, RTAF got the crucial eighth goal when Distar's Pakkapolchanan Ratsamee scored in his own net.

Songserm then completed his hat-trick and Worawit completed the rout with his fourth goal in the 80th minute.

"It was an amazing result in that we scored 10 goals," said Piyapong. "We have been preparing for this last match for a long time. We won a lot of possession and so Distar could not control the game at all. I told my players they had to score as many goals as possible. We are very happy to finish as league champions."

In the other matches, Port Authority defeated former champions Sinthana 5-2 at the Army Stadium.
A 5-0 win would have been enough to clinch the title for Port but the two goals scored by Sinthana proved crucial with RTAF scoring 10.

At the Bangkok Bank venue, the hosts lost 1-0 to the Telephone Organisation of Thailand (TOT).
BEC Tero beat Royal Thai Army (RTA) 3-2., BMA edged Krung Thai Bank 1-0 and Osotsapha defeated Thai Farmers Bank 3-1.

RTAF win two million baht as champions while runners-up Port receive one million baht.

Distar-BBC are relegated to the first division next year while the Army will play off against the second-placed team in the first division to decide whether they survive in the Premier League.

STANDING
Air Force .............  22 11 65 43 27 39
Port  ..................... 22 12 3 7 31 16 39
BEC Tero ............  22 11 6 5 35 23 39
Osotsapha ...........  22 10 9 3 32 21 39
TOT ....................  22 11 5 6 26 20 38
TFB ....................  22 8 8 6 37 31 32
Sinthana .............  22 9 3 10 30 30 30
Bangkok Bank ...  22 7 7 8 22 21 28
BMA .................. 22 7 5 10 24 28 26
Krung Thai ......... 22 5 10 7 28 32 25
Army  ................. 22 7 4 11 25 30 25
Distar BBC ......... 22 0 2 20 11 65 2