SHB Danang of Vietnam qualified for the knock-out round of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup 2013 after outperforming Maziya Sports & Recreation of Maldives 3-1 in their last Group G match on April 30.

Striker Gaston Merlo made a hat-trick on 14, 33 and 67 minutes, earning the Vietnamese representative in Group G a ticket to the second round.

SHB Danang was placed second only to Kelantan of Malaysia that defeated Ayeyawady of Myanmar 3-1 on the same day.

Second position means SHB Danang will be away in a knock-out clash against Semen Padang of Indonesia. The two will play in a single match to determine the winning team in the last Group eight.

Meanwhile, another Vietnamese team Saigon Xuan Thanh failed to qualify for the knock-out stage after a 4-1 loss to East Bengal of India in the last Group H match on the same day.

Both Saigon Xuan Thanh and Selangor of Malaysia had eight points after six matches, but the Malaysian team that beat Tamines Rovers of Singapore 3-2 on April 30 entered the second round on the aggregate score.-VNA