Ali Hj Ismail's target of making it to the semi-finals of the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Under-16 Championship were dealt a big blow after the national team lost 8-0 to Cambodia in yesterday's opener.
Prior to leaving for the 10-team tournament in Napyidaw, Myanmar, the national Under-16 coach said that he was aiming for a berth in the last four.
However, the national team who only started training last month have shown they aren't prepared for this tournament after yesterday's poor showing.
"We must set a target when competing in tournaments, and as a coach I will try... to get the best out of the players and I hope we can at least reach the semi-finals," said Ali prior to leaving on August 18.
"We have prepared well for this tournament and we've organised a number of friendly games," he added.
Brunei will face another hard battle against Australia tomorrow, the Australians beating Cambodia 4-0 in the first Group A game of the tournament.
Australia played against Myanmar in yesterday's other Group A game, the result of which could not be obtained as of press time.
Vietnam also have one win to their name after defeating Myanmar 4-0 on Tuesday.
Malaysia lead Group B after an easy 6-0 win against the Philippines.
Indonesia, who beat Laos 4-0 in the only other Group B game thus far, are second.
