Match #35 (1 Aug 09): So Close, But Never Meant To Be!

Victoria School remains a blessed ground for VS Staff and by that, VS Staff remain our nemesis, one that we just fail to beat. It was a match that we let it slip off our grip. Yes, VS Staff had to, similarly to our previous encounter, thank their 2nd half keeper for brilliantly denying us on 3 occasions. But we should not have let a healthy 3 – 1 lead being snatched from under our noses to end up with a 3 – 3 draw. We could have done better in closing down their play, especially their front duo – No 5 and No 7, who continued to terrorise us with their clever off-the-ball running to shake off our marking effectively. VS Staff’s football was simple, which was just to get the ball to either of these 2 front men and let them finish the job. Indeed, they did just so with devastating effect. Both played a significant role in all the 3 VS Staff goals.

Last-minute withdrawals of players forced us to call up a guest player in Woon and to ask Brandon, who was suffering from gout, to play through the pain barrier. We started off lively. Kian Hwa twice set up from the left but neither effort was capitalised by the forwards. Our game plan was to close down on both No 5 & 7 but we came up short in stopping the supply to them. Notwithstanding his irritating style of play, one has to give credit to No 7 for his constant off-the-ball running and superbly making use of his low centre of gravity to turn his markers well. One such swift turn left Hock Leong rooted and No 7 cruised on unimpeded into the box before squaring the ball across the six-yard box for No 5 to tap in for their lead. 0 – 1! The Teck Wah-Gan partnership reigned supreme in the 1st half. First, Gan put in a long cross from the right into the box, aiming at Teck Wah running in from the blind side. Teck Wah connected with the ball well but the effort went wide. Teck Wah then returned favour by setting up Gan in the box with a diagonal pass and the latter’s snap low shot beat the keeper flat for our equaliser. 1 – 1! We seized the lead shortly after our equaliser. Gan and VS Staff’s defender tussled for See Chiang’s cross from the right and Kian Hwa pounced onto the poorly-cleared ball in the box. See Chiang spared KH’s embarrassing shot by meeting the miscued ball at the far right post to squeeze the ball into the net from a very tight angle. 2 – 1! Teck Chye then did his twist-and-turn in the middle of the park before chipping the ball over the flat-footed defence for Teck Wah to run on and lob the ball over the keeper for our 3rd goal. 3 – 1. The Tang brothers set an identical effort moments later but this time round, Teck Wah fashioned himself to be a rugby player. 3 – 1 at half-time, in our favour.

2nd-half was a showcase for both goalkeepers. VS Staff’s replacement keeper was a class act with 3 breathtaking saves to deny us. On the other hand, VS Staff kept peppering at our goal with high balls into the box, hoping to capitalise on Brandon’s tentativeness shown in the previous encounter but they found a different Brandon in this match. Brandon was up to the challenge with every high ball and cross. Apart from dealing the high balls with newly found confidence, he twice came off the line to smother their through balls and prevent any further damage. First, he went down well onto his left to gather a through ball cleanly. The second effort forced their No 5 to take a detour, thereby denying their No 5 to have a clean shot at goal. Still, nothing could really stop No 5 and No 7 from punishing us dearly for failing to anticipate their moves. No 7’s lightning-fast turn allowed him to flash past Weng Kwan and his square pass was turned into the own net by our Ng. No 7 was then at the receiving end to produce a simple tap-in when No 5 broke our offside line to receive a free-kick at the far post. No 5 had plenty of time to look up and pick out No 7 with a simple square pass.

Before VS Staff’s 2 goals, we were dubiously denied by the referee for a legitimate penalty. Gan’s powerful header brought out a point-blank reflex save from the keeper. Kian Hwa attempted to follow up but he was tripped in the box from behind by VS Staff’s midfielder. To everybody’s bewilderment, the referee blew for a corner instead as the last touch came off Kian Hwa as he was falling down. Teck Chye had 2 certain goals denied by VS Staff’s keeper. His first effort was a stiff grounder that came off a VS Staff’s defender. Though their keeper was already wrong-footed, he managed to twist his body to the other side to palm the diverted ball out for a corner. We could not believe our luck when another Teck Chye shot brought out another top-class save from their keeper, whose smart dive to his right steered Teck Chye’s low shot away to safety.

The closely-matched encounter ended 3 – 3.

Man of The Match: Gan (3 out of 13 votes)
Both Gan and Melvin tied at 3 votes each. I had to break the impasse and so tossed the coin, which turned out to be in Gan’s favour. I suppose strikers always end up in a more advantageous position when it comes to a situation like his, especially when he has scored a superb goal. So, Gan was the MoTM!
“MOTM for saturday game- Gan. a well controlled and brilliant first goal. Great goal to start a 3 goal rush for Marine Sunday”
“MOTM: The goal scored by Gan was spectacular and did make a difference for boosting the team’s morale to fight harder in the attack for the first half of the game. Besides, he had worked quite hard in the game as well. He has vote for the man of the match.”
“MOTM 1 aug: My vote for Gan. He made his presence felt, always looking for the ball, drawing 2-3 defenders freeing much needed space for others, calm execution of his goal, looking for space to set Wah up and good fitness throughout the game capped off his improving game. As we all every know about Chye and I don't mean to blow too much smoke up his ass but he and Melvin are masters at the feint and turn. I distinctly remember Chye's right footed flick of the ball to the left and then a left footed flick past the defender to the right all in 1 move. You practise that move everyday in your bathroom or what?”

His slimmer frame is not only attracting attention from the Thai workers but nominations as well. Melvin came in second, just lost out by a hair’s breadth:
“MOTM for 1/8 goes to Melvin. Excellent control of the defence line and really gave the opposition no. 7 a hard time. Played smartly and tactful despite lack of pace.”
“motm - melvin make few good pass and result in goal , also support defence well.”
“Motm - Melvin. losing weight helps a lot in his play and was supporting attack and tracking back in defence and making necessary fouls well.”

2 votes went to Teck Chye and that made him 3rd:
“Motm to chye. His moments on the field was full of endeavor & perceptive passes. Involved in all 3 goals.”
“MOM for 1 Aug: Chye-made a couple for wonderful passes that resulted in the goals.”

The remaining 5 votes went to the following 5 players:
“Hard to choose. Everyone played well but we were let down by lapses in concentration. The way we put three past them in quick succession was quite stunning. BUt we let them claw back just asy quickly. And all their goals came from the same set-up. Easy ball wide and chap strolls in before stroking for their forward for easy job. So my MOTM goes to the guys upfront who were really fired up. We had a few missed opportunities only cos their keper pulled off stunning saves. Teck Wah really stood out with his runs and positional play. He should have scored more but their stand-in keeper was brilliant.”
“MOTM goes to Weng Khong for working very hard in the midfield to harrass the opponents.”
“Motm: Simon. obviously itching to play after sitting out the past few games and showed he hasn't lost the touch with some very pinpoint passes and balls over the defense line for the forwards.”
“On a match like this, there are many heroes. We played as a team and should have won the match that we badly craved for. My MOTM goes to Ng, not for his fantastic all round play, but for turning up depsite his injury, and most important of all, for his no nonsense tackle on the no. 7 at the bye line. That was worth my vote.”
“Torn between Teck Chye and Brandon. Teck Chye was simply brilliant. Pin-point passes and so cruelly denied of goals! Brandon could have done better with his position at near post and covering angle but despite opponent peppering him with crosses, he dealt with them cleanly. Twice in the 2nd half, he came off his line fast – first time got down well on his left to collect a through ball cleanly; the second forcing their danger man, who was through on a one-on-one, to go wide. My vote goes to Brandon for his renewed confidence, for erasing the ghost of the embarrassing display in the previous match against the same opponent.”