A goal in the last four minutes gave the Thailand team a 1-0 win over the Soccersouth under-15 combination in the final of the International Youth Challenge tournament in Singapore at the weekend.
This was the second year the Soccersouth team had competed in the international tournament.
Last year a team from Dunedin schools did not win a game.
"We strengthened our team this year with players from Christchurch and Auckland," manager Bill Chisholm said on his return to Dunedin yesterday afternoon.
The invitation players made a big difference to the team, with Christchurch striker Ken Yamamoto being named the most valuable player of the tournament.
Another Christchurch player, Masen Hayes, was named the goalkeeper of the tournament.
Kings High School player Mark Burnett, the reserve goalkeeper, also made a significant impact at the tournament.
Midfielder Cam Howieson (Otago Boys) also impressed.
The eight-team invitation tournament was organised by a government sponsored sports school in Singapore and was played on an artificial surface.
The Soccersouth squad of 18 players had Dunedin's Richard Murray and Tim Horner as coaches and Mark Harris was the physiotherapist.
The team comfortably won its three games in group play and then beat the Victorian team 3-1 in the semifinal.
