Most of the folks of Selaseh Food, our all-Malay opponent last Saturday, look more like wombats and we thought we had enough experience to more than match such gelek team. Little did we know that they possessed 2 little mice who can scurry through every nook and crevice. Their 2 livewires – No 2 and No 4, pulled the strings and carried the weight of the team. Their swift twinkle-toed movements were a joy to watch but nightmare for us to chase after and close down. Beating 3 or 4 of us at one go hardly broke any bead of sweat for them. Their support cast played simple, effective football of getting into space and passing the ball confidently, we were made to chase after the game throughout. We exchanged lead with them before both sides settled for a fair result of 3 – 3 draw. Again, our pure grit salvaged the game for us, when we should have capitalized on their vast difference in quality in their players but instead we let their pair of wizards control the match and terrorize us throughout.
The first scoring opportunity fell to the feet of Kian Hwa after Teck Wah brilliantly robbed the ball off their sweeper who was on the receiving end of a poor goal kick. Seeing the keeper retreating back to his line, Kian Hwa took a snap left-footed shot but the keeper managed to get his big foot to block the shot. Our first-time pairing of Weng Kwan-See Chiang took more than some time to settle down and SF seemed to sense the tentativeness in our backline, and they piled pressure on us non-stop. If they were clinical to capitalize on those openings, they could have easily had a handsome lead before even the 30th minute mark.
Our next goal opportunity was fluffed by the eagerness of Teck Chye to creep up the scoring chart and secure his Tang family legacy. Mike broke into space on the right and squared in a low cross into the box, Kian Hwa sold a dummy for Simon waiting in the box but Teck Chye came in for the same ball as well, resulting in a case of too many cooks spoiling the soup.
SF inevitably opened their account from the silky skills and pace of their No 4 after we shot ourselves in our feet at the back. See Chiang was caught napping in receiving a pass from Weng Kwan, allowing their No 4 to sneak in from behind and took the ball away in a flash. No 4 went on to dribble past 3 of our players, including Brandon, with such guile before burying the ball in the open goal. 0 – 1 down.
Chwee Leng came in for Teck Wah and had his first start of the season in his favoured striker role. And he didn’t disappoint with his immense contribution to our equalizer. As the half was drawing to a close, Chwee Leng called for the ball on the right and Kian Hwa duly found him in space with a reverse pass. Chwee Leng beat their big man sweeper before unleashing a shot at goal. The ball was destined going wide but SF custodian, another big and heavy chap, chose to dive low to collect the ball, only to cause a blunder by his failure to hold on to the ball cleanly. Teck Chye was at hand to scoop the ball into the net for his much-awaited goal. 1 – 1 at half-time.
Simon gamely took over Weng Kwan at the back, the latter having to retire early for a family commitment. We dug deep into our reserve of unyielding spirit and put up a much concerted and free-flowing effort in standing up to SF’s artistry and flair. With their keeper looking more like a clown ever ready to fumble, we were waiting for another early Lunar New Year hong-bao and we had him to thank for again in our 2nd goal. At the edge of the penalty box, he gifted the possession to, of all players, Teck Wah. Seeing the keeper hopelessly stranded in no man’s land, Teck Wah needed no invitation to produce a lob over him. 2 – 1 and we looked good for the money!
But No 4 had other ideas in mind and he showed us individualism can prevail. Another 2 goals from him reversed our lead into a lead for them. First, a shot coming in from the right gave Brandon no chance, with speculations that Brandon was having a snooze before realizing the shot coming in. 2 – 2. No 4 completed his hat-trick with a thunderous shot from distance. Despite his skinny frame, No 4 possesses enough tenacity and toughness just like Cesc Fabregas to pack enough punch in his shot. 2 – 3! Marine Sunday is not known for giving up until the whistle is blown and we proved to be the case again. Mike also notched his maiden goal of the season with a simple tap-in after Teck Wah brilliantly teed up the ball for him. Mike certainly deserved a goal for his improved performance. 3 – 3! The match ended in parity for both sides.
Man of the Match: See Chiang
Though tentative in the opening period, he filled in the stopper position with gutso. See Chiang is always a team player to give his 100% in whatever position he is asked to play. Here are his 5 winning votes:
“Motm was See Chiang. Good performance in an unfamiliar position. Although some mistakes were made, he got better as the game went on.”
“See Chiang for motm for good tackles on their young players”
“Motm see chiang for his overall effort”
“Motm is see chiang. Displayed good defensive play. Contained their players and was disciplined. Made important tackles”
“Motm Chiang. Cut out 50-50 balls, our most biting player to counter their flair.”
Though tentative in the opening period, he filled in the stopper position with gutso. See Chiang is always a team player to give his 100% in whatever position he is asked to play. Here are his 5 winning votes:
“Motm was See Chiang. Good performance in an unfamiliar position. Although some mistakes were made, he got better as the game went on.”
“See Chiang for motm for good tackles on their young players”
“Motm see chiang for his overall effort”
“Motm is see chiang. Displayed good defensive play. Contained their players and was disciplined. Made important tackles”
“Motm Chiang. Cut out 50-50 balls, our most biting player to counter their flair.”
Leo did well to gather 3 nominations:
“Leo. Snuffed our numerous attacks”
“Mom to leo. Make some timely interventions including blocking one fierce volley. Some nice touches when playing as a striker.”
“Leo – though he was beaten a few times on his side but that was because their right winger possesses pace. But Leo sticked out his leg effectively a few times to break up their attacks. He was the most assured defender in that first 20+ minutes before he ran out of breath.”
The Tang brothers had 2 each and Mike, Chwee Leng and Simon had 1 each to round up 15 votes in total:
“motm: teck chye. did a lot of dirty work on the left harassing and winning the ball. plus following in from midfield into the penalty box for his durian goal - something which we need more from our midfielders to be doing.”
”Mom is teck chye. For his industrious running and follow up to score the morale boosting first goal.”
“No one stand out, so I will go for tw [i.e Teck Wah] who score the 2nd goal n create the 3rd”
“Tough choice, between simon and teck wah, will go for teck wah for scoring the second goal and initiating some of our more dangerous attacks down our right flank.”
“Chwee Leng – didn’t stop running though can see he was outpaced.”
“Mike, who make the score to 3-3”
“Mom: Simon for holding the defend [defence, he meant] well.”
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