match report by kh
After two splendid successive matches of come-from-behind draws, we were certainly up for any opponents on 15 Nov. But before a ball was even kicked, what could go wrong went wrong for us, leaving us with a molehill, which would later turn into a mountain, to climb before squaring up with SOFA.
Non-availability of many first-choice players left us depleted, rendering us to call up a record five guest players. One pulled out on the 11th hour, one was erroneously informed of the kick-off time and thus missed the match. Two could not find the way to the pitch and arrived late, and we started the match short of two men and conceded an early goal before these two guest players, Terk and Kok Hock, arrived to make up 11. And the ultimate straw of bad luck was cast upon us mid way through first half. Leo, rumoured to be on the bookies' payroll, raised further suspicion when he took our custodian, Brandon, out by stamping onto the latter's wrist. So KH had to fill in between the posts on an emergency basis and swapped with Brandon, who had to later resume play as an outfield player to make up the number. Then Weng Khong had to withdraw from the 2nd half due to a romantic rekindling with ex-flame, leaving us short in quantity again, when we were already deficient in the quality department. So, there you had it, somebody must have encountered a black cat the night before.
Let's be honest. We don't think much of Brandon as an outfield player. Then again, Kian Hwa was worse as a goalkeeper. Shortly after we gained the lead, he conceded one of those goalkeeping howlers that could potentially wreck a goalkeeper's career - he let a tame, innocuous-looking shot from outside the box slip under his body for SOFA's equaliser. If Seah or Brandon had conceded this goal, you would have first heard KH yelling from the other end of the pitch. Yet, the defence line comprising Weng Kwan, Kok Hock, Ng and Leo kept the frustration to themselves. But when KH conceded his 5th and our 6th goal - a typical looping ball exposing his deficiency in height, Ng couldn't help laughing!
Well, if there was any consolation, Tottenham Hotspurs' Gomes came up even worse in how he conceded the first goal against Fulham later in the evening. Moreover, even though KH conceded five out of our six goals, he also pulled off five saves in the 2nd half. One of which was a typical Peter Schmichael quick-off-the-line to block a shot in the 6-yards box. And not forgetting his drop kicks posed quite a fair bit of threat to the opposing keeper. So, KH's damage was mitigated, there is still a bit of hope for him to retain a place in the team :)
OK, enough of shameless self-praise. For the record, Terk equalised for us at 1-1, then we gained the lead through Mike after SOFA could not clear our corner. Then the rest, refer to preceding paragraphs.
Terk led the front line well, most of the time on his own and chasing after the long punting ball from KH's drop kick. He even created an opportunity in the 2nd half for Kok Hock, who smacked the ball against the horizontal. The other 2 guest players, Alex and Kok Hock, gamely shouldered on a lost cause for us. Brandon gave his best, though obviously not comfortable in an outfield position. Weng Khong was regaining his form with his work rate. Yong Chua led by example and played through the pain barrier due to his swollen toe. Mike, despite the rustiness, gave what his sore back could afford. And the defensive trio of Weng Kwan, Leo and Ng, their indomitable spirit despite facing endless onslaughts from SOFA was simply admirable. And you only need to listen to Ng's laughter when we conceded goal No 6 that well, all is still OK....notwithstanding the 2-6 score line!
Non-availability of many first-choice players left us depleted, rendering us to call up a record five guest players. One pulled out on the 11th hour, one was erroneously informed of the kick-off time and thus missed the match. Two could not find the way to the pitch and arrived late, and we started the match short of two men and conceded an early goal before these two guest players, Terk and Kok Hock, arrived to make up 11. And the ultimate straw of bad luck was cast upon us mid way through first half. Leo, rumoured to be on the bookies' payroll, raised further suspicion when he took our custodian, Brandon, out by stamping onto the latter's wrist. So KH had to fill in between the posts on an emergency basis and swapped with Brandon, who had to later resume play as an outfield player to make up the number. Then Weng Khong had to withdraw from the 2nd half due to a romantic rekindling with ex-flame, leaving us short in quantity again, when we were already deficient in the quality department. So, there you had it, somebody must have encountered a black cat the night before.
Let's be honest. We don't think much of Brandon as an outfield player. Then again, Kian Hwa was worse as a goalkeeper. Shortly after we gained the lead, he conceded one of those goalkeeping howlers that could potentially wreck a goalkeeper's career - he let a tame, innocuous-looking shot from outside the box slip under his body for SOFA's equaliser. If Seah or Brandon had conceded this goal, you would have first heard KH yelling from the other end of the pitch. Yet, the defence line comprising Weng Kwan, Kok Hock, Ng and Leo kept the frustration to themselves. But when KH conceded his 5th and our 6th goal - a typical looping ball exposing his deficiency in height, Ng couldn't help laughing!
Well, if there was any consolation, Tottenham Hotspurs' Gomes came up even worse in how he conceded the first goal against Fulham later in the evening. Moreover, even though KH conceded five out of our six goals, he also pulled off five saves in the 2nd half. One of which was a typical Peter Schmichael quick-off-the-line to block a shot in the 6-yards box. And not forgetting his drop kicks posed quite a fair bit of threat to the opposing keeper. So, KH's damage was mitigated, there is still a bit of hope for him to retain a place in the team :)
OK, enough of shameless self-praise. For the record, Terk equalised for us at 1-1, then we gained the lead through Mike after SOFA could not clear our corner. Then the rest, refer to preceding paragraphs.
Terk led the front line well, most of the time on his own and chasing after the long punting ball from KH's drop kick. He even created an opportunity in the 2nd half for Kok Hock, who smacked the ball against the horizontal. The other 2 guest players, Alex and Kok Hock, gamely shouldered on a lost cause for us. Brandon gave his best, though obviously not comfortable in an outfield position. Weng Khong was regaining his form with his work rate. Yong Chua led by example and played through the pain barrier due to his swollen toe. Mike, despite the rustiness, gave what his sore back could afford. And the defensive trio of Weng Kwan, Leo and Ng, their indomitable spirit despite facing endless onslaughts from SOFA was simply admirable. And you only need to listen to Ng's laughter when we conceded goal No 6 that well, all is still OK....notwithstanding the 2-6 score line!
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