The draw was made by the Asian Football Confederation at a meeting in Manila on the 7th June 1955. Twenty nations were included, several of which had not actually joined the A.F.C.; these were included in the draw on the basis of their membership of the Asian Games Federation. The nations were grouped into three geographical zones, with knockout pairings to be played as home and away legs. Ultimately, twelve of the twenty nations withdrew (or declined to participate) without playing a match. Hong Kong qualified as host. All matches were 80 minutes in duration, with no substitutions permitted. Western Zone No matches were played; Israel qualified by default after all the other nations withdrew. After several unsuccessful attempts to communicate with its opponents, Israel was eventually informed by the A.F.C. in April 1956 that it had received walkovers vs Pakistan and Afghanistan, both of whom had refused to host the Israeli team. The original draw (June 1955) is given below. First round Burma - Nepal India - Iran Afghanistan w/o Ceylon Israel w/o Pakistan Second round Burma/Nepal - India/Iran Israel w/o Afghanistan Third round Israel w/o Burma/Nepal/India/Iran Central Zone First round 17- 3-1956 Malaya 9-2 Cambodia [at Kuala Lumpur] 29- 4-1956 Cambodia 3-2 Malaya [at Phnom Penh] Indonesia w/o Singapore (withdrew) South Vietnam bye Thailand bye Second round 3- 5-1956 South Vietnam 4-0 Malaya [at Saïgon] 24- 5-1956 Malaya 3-3 South Vietnam [at Kuala Lumpur] Thailand w/o Indonesia Note: Indonesia insisted that it could not participate as it was not affiliated to the A.F.C. Third round South Vietnam w/o Thailand (withdrew) South Vietnam qualified. Eastern Zone First round Taiwan w/o Japan (withdrew) North Borneo bye Philippines bye South Korea bye Second round 25- 2-1956 Philippines 0-2 South Korea [at Manila] 21- 4-1956 South Korea 3-0 Philippines [at Seoul] Taiwan w/o North Borneo (withdrew) Third round 26- 8-1956 South Korea 2-0 Taiwan [at Seoul] 2- 9-1956 Taiwan 1-2 South Korea [at Taipei] South Korea qualified.
Held at the Government Stadium (also known as Hong Kong Stadium), Hong Kong.
All matches were 80 minutes in duration, with no substitutions permitted.
The tournament rules stipulated that extra time (30 minutes) should be played in the event of
a draw, but in both such instances the referee ended the game after 80 minutes due to bad light.
1- 9-1956 Hong Kong 2-3 Israel
6- 9-1956 Hong Kong 2-2 South Korea
8- 9-1956 South Korea 2-1 Israel
9- 9-1956 Hong Kong 2-2 South Vietnam
12- 9-1956 Israel 2-1 South Vietnam
15- 9-1956 South Korea 5-3 South Vietnam
1.South Korea 3 2 1 0 9- 6 5
2.Israel 3 2 0 1 6- 5 4
3.Hong Kong 3 0 2 1 6- 7 2
4.South Vietnam 3 0 1 2 6- 9 1
Note: the trophy was presented to Lee Yoo-Hyung, chief delegate of the South Korean team, by
Commodore John H. Unwin, Vice-President of the H.K.F.A., at the official tournament dinner
on 17-9-56 at the Tai Tung restaurant. Every member of the four finalist teams also received
a medal.
Top scorer (final tournament) : Nahum Stelmach (Israel), 4 goals
Top scorer (including qualifying) : Abdul Ghani Minhat (Malaya), 10 goals
See separate file for team squads.
Qualifying tournament
17- 3-1956 Malaya 9-2 Cambodia [HT 7-0]
[Abdul Ghani Minhat 14' ~22' ~25' ~30' ~31' ~35' 43', Pang Siang Hock 20' ~45' / Nguon Tuy 65', Ken Peou 66']
[at T.P.C.A. Stadium (Princes Road Stadium), Kuala Lumpur; kick-off 5.15pm; att: 4000]
[Malaya: Ong Kim Hock (GK); Lee Sai Chong [c], Tang Cheok Foo; Mok Wai Hong, Yap Hin Hean, Chuah Poh Aun;
Mok Wai Keen, Pang Siang Hock, Abdul Ghani Minhat, Pang Siang Teik, S.Govindarajoo.]
[Cambodia: Duong Duch (GK); Aing Kim Ean, Chea Hoeun; Hem Som, Pramo de la Cruz, Prak Kimsann [c];
Nguon Bun, Ken Peou, "Lay", Nguon Tuy, Kong Thann.]
[Referee: Greg de Silva (Singapore).]
[Coaches: Malaya: G.Paul. Cambodia: Azerie.]
[Note: the identity of the Cambodian player "Lay" is unclear.]
29- 4-1956 Cambodia 3-2 Malaya [HT 1-1]
["Lung" 35' 78', Nguon Tuy 65' / Abdul Ghani Minhat ~20', ? 45' OG]
[at Stade Vélodrome Lambert, Phnom Penh]
[Cambodia: ]
[Malaya (preview): Ong Kim Hock (GK); Lee Sai Chong [c], Tang Cheok Foo; Mok Wai Hong, Yap Hin Hean, Chuah Poh Aun;
Mok Wai Keen, Pang Siang Hock, Abdul Ghani Minhat, Pang Siang Teik, S.Govindarajoo.]
[Referee: Trương Văn Ký (South Vietnam).]
[Coaches: Cambodia: Azerie. Malaya: G.Paul.]
[Note: the identity of the Cambodian player "Lung" is unclear.]
3- 5-1956 South Vietnam 4-0 Malaya [HT 2-0]
[Đỗ Quang Thách 17' 57', Lê Hữu Đức 30', Nguyễn Văn Tư 65']
[at Stade du C.S.S. (Stade du Jardin de la Ville), Saïgon; kick-off 4pm; att: 20000]
[South Vietnam: Nguyễn Văn Quí (GK); Trần Văn Nhung 'Pierre', Nguyễn Vi Nhơn 'Waico'; Dương Văn Quới, Phạm Văn Hiếu, Lê Văn Hồ 'Myo';
Lưu Tấn Ngọc, Đỗ Quang Thách, Trương Văn Được, Lê Hữu Đức [c], Nguyễn Văn Tư.]
[Malaya: Ong Kim Hock (GK); Tang Cheok Foo, Kwong Chong Yin; Pang Siang Hock, Yap Hin Hean, Edwin Dutton [c];
Mok Wai Keen, Mohammed 'Mat' Noor Khamis, Abdul Ghani Minhat, Pang Siang Teik, S.Govindarajoo.]
[Referee: Eng Ly Bean (Cambodia).]
[Coaches: South Vietnam: Lt-Col. Nguyễn Văn Bông. Malaya: G.Paul.]
[Notes: goal times are also reported as 24' 37' 57' 70'.
Mat Noor Khamis retired injured at 70', and Malaya continued with 10 players.]
24- 5-1956 Malaya 3-3 South Vietnam [HT 0-1]
[Abdul Ghani Minhat 51' 75', Pang Siang Hock 76' / Nguyễn Văn Tư 35' 78', Trần Văn Nhung 'Pierre' 67']
[at T.P.C.A. Stadium (Princes Road Stadium), Kuala Lumpur; kick-off 5pm; att: 7500]
[Malaya: Ong Kim Hock (GK); Kwong Chong Yin, Tang Cheok Foo; Chuah Poh Aun, Yap Hin Hean, Edwin Dutton [c];
Mok Wai Keen, Pang Siang Hock, Abdul Ghani Minhat, Pang Siang Teik, S.Govindarajoo.]
[South Vietnam: Phạm Văn Rạng (GK); Nguyễn Vi Nhơn 'Waico', Dương Văn Quới; Trương Hữu Thọ, Phạm Văn Hiếu, Lê Văn Hồ 'Myo';
Trần Văn Nhung 'Pierre', Đỗ Quang Thách, Trương Văn Được, Lê Hữu Đức [c], Nguyễn Văn Tư.]
[Referee: Greg de Silva (Singapore).]
[Coaches: Malaya: G.Paul. South Vietnam: Lt-Col. Nguyễn Văn Bông.]
[Note: Pang Siang Teik retired injured at 57', and Malaya continued with 10 players.]
25- 2-1956 Philippines 0-2 South Korea [HT 0-0]
[Sung Nak-Woon 53', Choi Jung-Min 56']
[at Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila; kick-off 8pm; att: 8000]
[Philippines: Victor Sison (GK); Fernando Alvarez [c], Dick Powell; Julio Garcia, Edgardo Ocampo, Emmanuel Bravo;
Dick Chua, Eduardo Marquez-Lim, Eddie Pacheco, Angelo Dauden, Alberto Villareal.]
[South Korea (incomplete): Ham Heung-Chul (GK); ?, ?; ?, ?, ?; Kim Dong-Keun, Sung Nak-Woon,
Choi Jung-Min, Kim Yung-Jin, Park Il-Kap.]
[Referee: Johnny Cuatico (Philippines).]
[Coaches: Philippines: Louie Javellana. South Korea: Chu Yung-Kwang.]
[Note: Victor Sison saved a penalty from Sung Nak-Woon at 45'.]
21- 4-1956 South Korea 3-0 Philippines [HT 1-0]
[Kim Hong-Woo 5' 62', Woo Sang-Kwon 59']
[at Seoul Stadium, Seoul; kick-off 3pm; att: 35000]
[South Korea: Ham Heung-Chul (GK); Lee Jong-Kap, Park Jae-Seung [c]; Son Myung-Sup, Jung Hyung-Sik, Cha Tae-Sung;
Kim Dong-Keun, Kim Hong-Woo, Choi Jung-Min, Woo Sang-Kwon, Park Il-Kap.]
[Philippines: Victor Sison (GK); Fernando Alvarez [c], Dick Powell; Julio Garcia, Edgardo Ocampo, Emmanuel Bravo;
Dick Chua, Jose Villareal, Eddie Pacheco, David Arcenas, Alberto Villareal.]
[Referee: Lee Yong-Il (South Korea).]
[Coaches: South Korea: Chu Yung-Kwang. Philippines: Louie Javellana.]
[Note: the KFA reports the goal times as 5' 78' and 64'.]
26- 8-1956 South Korea 2-0 Taiwan [HT 1-0]
[Choi Jung-Min 23', Kim Dong-Keun 78']
[at Seoul Stadium, Seoul; kick-off 5pm; att: 35000]
[South Korea: Ham Heung-Chul (GK); Cha Tae-Sung, Park Jae-Sung [c]; Son Myung-Sup, Kim Jin-Woo, Kim Ji-Sung;
Choi Kwang-Suk, Sung Nak-Woon, Kim Yung-Jin, Choi Jung-Min, Kim Dong-Keun.]
[Taiwan: Yung Poy-Dor (GK); Ng Wai-Man, Lau Yee; Chan Fai-Hung, Lau Tim, Lee Kwok-Wah;
Yeung Wai-To, Szeto Man, Chu Wing-Keung [c], Yiu Cheuk-Yin, Mok Chun-Wah.]
[Referee: Kim Duk-Joon (South Korea).]
[Coaches: South Korea: Kim Sung-Kan. Taiwan: Lai Shiu-Wing.]
2- 9-1956 Taiwan 1-2 South Korea [HT 1-0]
[Chu Wing-Keung 20' / Woo Sang-Kwon 66' pen, Kim Dong-Keun 79']
[at Taipei Municipal Stadium, Taipei; kick-off 5pm; att: 20000]
[Taiwan: Yung Poy-Dor (GK); Ng Wai-Man, Lau Yee; Tang Sum, Lau Tim, Kwok Shek;
Szeto Man, Yeung Wai-To, Chu Wing-Keung [c], Yiu Cheuk-Yin, Mok Chun-Wah.]
[South Korea: Ham Heung-Chul (GK); Cha Tae-Sung, Park Jae-Sung [c]; Son Myung-Sup, Kim Jin-Woo, Kim Ji-Sung;
Choi Jung-Min, Sung Nak-Woon, Kim Yung-Jin, Woo Sang-Kwon, Kim Dong-Keun.]
[Referee: Flying Officer Richard Tucker (Hong Kong).]
[Coaches: Taiwan: Lai Shiu-Wing. South Korea: Kim Sung-Kan.]
Final tournament
1- 9-1956 Hong Kong 2-3 Israel [HT 1-1]
[Au Chi-Yin 12' 67' / Yehoshua Glazer 37' 76', Nahum Stelmach 69']
[at Government Stadium, Hong Kong; kick-off 5.45pm; att: 30000]
[Hong Kong: Wai Fat-Kim (GK); Lee Ping-Chiu, Szeto Yiu; Luk Tat-Hay, Ko Po-Keung [c], Chan Chi-Kong;
Chu Wing-Wah, Lau Chi-Lam, Au Chi-Yin, Ho Cheung-Yau, Lam Kam-Tong.]
[Israel: Yaacov Hodorov (GK); Shaul Matania, David Kremer; Moshe 'Jerry' Haldi, Itzhak Schneor [c], Binyamin Rabinovich;
Boaz Kofman, Nahum Stelmach, Yehoshua Glazer, Shmuel 'Papo' Israeli, Yosef Mirmovich.]
[Referee: Jack Sheppard (Hong Kong).]
[Coaches: Hong Kong: Tom Sneddon (Scotland). Israel: Jackie Gibbons (England).]
6- 9-1956 Hong Kong 2-2 South Korea [HT 2-0]
[Tang Yee-Kit 10', Ko Po-Keung 39' / Kim Ji-Sung 45', Choi Kwang-Suk 62']
[at Government Stadium, Hong Kong; kick-off 6pm; att: 25000]
[Hong Kong: Wai Fat-Kim (GK); Lau Chi-Ping, Szeto Yiu; Luk Tat-Hay, Ko Po-Keung [c], Chan Chi-Kong;
Chu Wing-Wah, Ho Cheung-Yau, Au Chi-Yin, Lam Kam-Tong, Tang Yee-Kit.]
[South Korea: Ham Heung-Chul (GK); Cha Tae-Sung, Park Jae-Seung [c]; Son Myung-Sup, Kim Jin-Woo, Kim Ji-Sung;
Choi Kwang-Suk, Sung Nak-Woon, Kim Yung-Jin, Woo Sang-Kwon, Kim Dong-Keun.]
[Referee: Reuven Priesner (Israel).]
[Coaches: Hong Kong: Tom Sneddon (Scotland). South Korea: Kim Sung-Kan.]
[Notes: according to the tournament rules extra time should have been played, but the referee
decided that it had become too dark to continue. Hong Kong newspapers reported the
second Korean scorer as Woo Sang-Kwon or Sung Nak-Woon.]
8- 9-1956 South Korea 2-1 Israel [HT 0-0]
[Woo Sang-Kwon 52', Sung Nak-Woon 62' / Nahum Stelmach 71']
[at Government Stadium, Hong Kong; kick-off 5.45pm; att: 25000]
[South Korea: Ham Heung-Chul (GK); Cha Tae-Sung, Park Jae-Seung [c]; Son Myung-Sup, Kim Jin-Woo, Kim Ji-Sung;
Choi Jung-Min, Sung Nak-Woon, Kim Yung-Jin, Woo Sang-Kwon, Kim Dong-Keun.]
[Israel: Yaacov Hodorov (GK); Shabtai 'Zigi' Zilberstein, David Kremer; Moshe 'Jerry' Haldi, Itzhak Schneor [c], Binyamin Rabinovich;
Yehoshua Glazer, Nahum Stelmach, Boaz Kofman, Rehavia Rosenbaum, Yosef Mirmovich.]
[Referee: Trương Văn Ký (South Vietnam).]
[Coaches: South Korea: Kim Sung-Kan. Israel: Jackie Gibbons (England).]
[Sent off: Cha Tae-Sung 74']
9- 9-1956 Hong Kong 2-2 South Vietnam [HT 0-1]
[Chu Wing-Wah 59' pen, Lau Chi-Lam 79'/ Trần Văn Nhung 'Pierre' 30', Lê Hữu Đức 65']
[at Government Stadium, Hong Kong; kick-off 5.45pm; att: 20000]
[Hong Kong: Cheung Koon-Hing (GK); Lau Chi-Ping, Szeto Yiu; Luk Tat-Hay, Ko Po-Keung [c], Chan Chi-Kong;
Chu Wing-Wah, Lau Chi-Lam, Au Chi-Yin, Ho Cheung-Yau, Tang Yee-Kit.]
[South Vietnam: Phạm Văn Rạng (GK); Nguyễn Vi Nhơn 'Waico', Dương Văn Quới; Trương Hữu Thọ, Phạm Văn Hiếu, Lê Văn Hồ 'Myo';
Trần Văn Nhung 'Pierre', Đỗ Quang Thách, Trương Văn Được, Lê Hữu Đức [c], Nguyễn Văn Tư.]
[Referee: Sung Hee-Do (South Korea).]
[Coaches: Hong Kong: Tom Sneddon (Scotland). South Vietnam: none.]
[Notes: according to the tournament rules extra time should have been played, but the referee
decided that it had become too dark to continue. The second Hong Kong goal was also reported
as an own-goal by Phạm Văn Hiếu.]
12- 9-1956 Israel 2-1 South Vietnam [HT 2-0]
[Nahum Stelmach 16' 28' / Trần Văn Nhung 'Pierre' 58']
[at Government Stadium, Hong Kong; kick-off 6pm; att: 10000]
[Israel: Yaacov Visoker (GK); David Kremer, Yehoshua Glazer; Moshe 'Jerry' Haldi, Itzhak Schneor [c], Binyamin Rabinovich;
Shmuel 'Papo' Israeli, Nahum Stelmach, Rehavia Rosenbaum, Eliezer Spiegel, Yosef Mirmovich.]
[South Vietnam: Phạm Văn Rạng (GK); Nguyễn Vi Nhơn 'Waico', Dương Văn Quới; Trần Văn Ứng, Phạm Văn Hiếu, Lê Văn Hồ 'Myo';
Trần Văn Nhung 'Pierre', Đỗ Quang Thách, Đinh Văn Phải, Lê Hữu Đức [c], Nguyễn Văn Tư.]
[Referee: Flying Officer Richard Tucker (Hong Kong).]
[Coaches: Israel: Jackie Gibbons (England). South Vietnam: none.]
[Note: it is also reported that Nguyễn Văn Cụt played instead of Đinh Văn Phải.]
15- 9-1956 South Korea 5-3 South Vietnam [HT 1-1]
[Sung Nak-Woon 5', Woo Sang-Kwon 46' pen 58', Choi Jung-Min 56' 66' / Nguyễn Văn Cụt 20' pen, Lê Hữu Đức 50' 62']
[at Government Stadium, Hong Kong; kick-off 5.45pm; att: 13000]
[South Korea: Ham Heung-Chul (GK); Cha Tae-Sung, Park Jae-Seung [c]; Son Myung-Sup, Kim Jin-Woo, Kim Ji-Sung;
Choi Jung-Min, Sung Nak-Woon, Kim Yung-Jin, Woo Sang-Kwon, Kim Dong-Keun.]
[South Vietnam: Phạm Văn Rạng (GK); Trần Văn Nhung 'Pierre', Dương Văn Quới; Nguyễn Văn Cụt, Phạm Văn Hiếu, Lê Văn Hồ 'Myo';
Lê Văn Đạt-tự-Kỷ, Trương Hữu Thọ, Nguyễn Văn Tư, Lê Hữu Đức [c], Tạ Vinh Trạch.]
[Referee: Lt Fred Minta (Hong Kong).]
[Coaches: South Korea: Kim Sung-Kan. South Vietnam: none.]
[Notes: several variations of the Korean scorers were reported by different sources. Alternatives include
Son Myung-Sup 5', Cha Tae-Sung 46' pen, and Kim Yung-Jin 56'. The first Vietnamese scorer was also
reported as Trương Hữu Thọ, due to ambiguity in the Vietnamese lineup. Two versions of the Vietnamese
lineup were reported; the version given above is that published by both the "South China Morning Post"
and the "China Mail". A different lineup appeared on the official team sheet distributed to reporters
prior to kick-off, and this version was published in the "Hong Kong Standard":
Phạm Văn Rạng (GK); Trần Văn Nhung 'Pierre', Nguyễn Văn Cụt; Trương Hữu Thọ, Phạm Văn Hiếu, Lê Văn Hồ 'Myo';
Lê Văn Đạt-tự-Kỷ, Trần Văn Ứng, Nguyễn Văn Tư, Lê Hữu Đức [c], Tạ Vinh Trạch.
The newspaper reports mentioned that there were clear discrepancies between this "official" lineup and
the actual team which entered the field. Reporters who tried to obtain the correct lineup during the
match were met with reluctance by the Vietnamese officials, one of whom was quoted as saying that the
true lineup was "a military secret".
Before the match, the Vietnamese officials protested against the inclusion of the Korean player
Cha Tae-Sung, claiming he was ineligible to play as he had been sent off in South Korea's previous match.]
Sources included: Manila Times, Manila Bulletin, Evening News (Manila), Dong-A Ilbo (East Asia Daily, Seoul), Kyunghyang Press (Seoul), Korean Republic (Seoul), K.F.A., Yansfield (Yan Yoon), Davar (Israel), Sports News (Israel), Israeli football research by Yaniv Bleicher, Straits Times (Singapore), Singapore Free Press, Journal d'extrême-orient (Saïgon), Réalités cambodgiennes (Phnom Penh), La Liberté (Phnom Penh), Malay Mail (Kuala Lumpur), Pinang Gazette (Penang), Straits Echo (Penang), China Post (Taipei), China News (Taipei), Tzu-Lih Wan-Pao (Independence Evening Post, Taipei), South China Morning Post (Hong Kong), China Mail (Hong Kong), Hong Kong Standard.
Thanks to Yaniv Bleicher and 'Tanaka'. Special thanks to Richard Tucker, who refereed in this tournament, for access to his personal archives.
Thanks to Bojan Jovanović, Majeed Panahi and Pieter Veroeveren for an earlier version of this file.
Prepared and maintained by Neil Morrison for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation
Author: Neil Morrison
Last updated: 2 Feb 2017
(C) Copyright Neil Morrison 1995/2017
You are free to copy this document in whole or part provided that proper
acknowledgement is given to the authors. All rights reserved.