Match #13 (8 March 09): Strong Finish - Ode to KH

match reporting by mel the pal!

Even in his absence, KH's omnipresence was to cast a long shadow on Marine Sunday's come-from-behind win on Sunday against Bishan Tigers. It is fortunate that we are blessed with a Venerable Leader like Kim Jong Il. Sorry I meant KH. Our dear leader's foreskin, sorry, foresight helped us carve a good victory on a massively hot day.

It was his awareness that if we are understrength, we will be motivated to perform. I had the good fortune of playing for Iraq under Uday Hussein, Saddam Hussein's son. Oh how he motivated us with beatings and electric shock treatment. And so it was that we had 12 on a blistering hot day. Make it 11 since Melvin's souffe ankle is prone to collapsing.

The match started with MS proving to be more energetic. But passes in the last third were lacking. It was clear we miss KH's energetic runs and his pinpoint crosses. So we had to make do with Teck Wah and gang. Crosses flew in from right and left but the last touch was sadly lacking. As always, this is how we get punished.

First, a tackle on Melvin had him go down faster than a trannie at Changi Village (I don't know from experience. Ng told me). His painful scream could be heard in Malaysia. Weng Khong came in and it looked like Melvin's game. The disruption proved painful as a BT attack had their forward facing Brandon in a one on one challenge. The chap was so happy to see the ball roll in he screamed in delight, and it woke Malaysia again.

Oh how we miss KH's put down. Clear the ball, he would scream. Instead we chose to pass around and paid the price for playing simple passing football. Thankfully half-time came but not before Melvin was dragged back into the game.

The second half proved to be just as painful. Without KH running all over the pitch like a dog in heat looking for a bitch, See Chiang and Ng had little choice but to step up. They huffed and puffed. Ng deserves praise for playing in just about every position. He was left, then right back. He was the defensive midfielder and also played on the left side. He finished the game as centre forward. Once again, we have to thank our dear leader for having the foresight to leave us short so Ng could show us that he knows all the positions in the karma sutra. See Chiang formed a forminable partnership with the ever cool Mark and is proving to be as good a header of ball as Yong Chua. Up front, Teck Wah ran for every loose ball hoping to catch one that would leave him with a shot.

Just when it looked like we would suffer a loss, the effervescent Chye pulled left and sent in a pin-point cross for Wah who was surrounded by two defenders and the keeper. Wah headed it into the open goal for our equaliser. 1-1.

With Weng Khong and Simon's energetic running, BT's resolve looked to be fast fading. Weng Khong then sent a Hoddle like diagonal pass to Wah who pulled the ball down with one touch and then coolly rolled the ball past the onrushing keeper. 1-2.

BT sent in their reserves and pushed hard for the equaliser. Oh how we needed KH to keep us on our toes. Instead we had Melvin whose passes were pinpoint in picking out the opponents. The weather was taking its toll on MS with regular changes, so regular that each player had about a two minute break before being dragged into the fray.

That was when Ng picked up the baton and showed he is evergreen. Wah played a clever ball wide on the right for Ng who took it in one touch, turned and send in a low cross which fooled the defenders and keeper. It rolled perfectly for Wah to finish his hat-trick. Absolutely brilliant! 1-3

More changes were made and BT had one shot which came off the post. When the ref blew the whistle, MS players fell to their knees and looked to the heavens, crying: "Dear leader, thank you! Thank you for making us suffer dear leader"

Man of The Match: See Chiang (8 votes)
A seriously depleted team of 12 managed to conjure a come-from-behind win – the most hard fought so far! But unusual circumstances produced the unlikely hero!
“Many played above themselves but Chiang climbed heads & shoulders above all (literal & figurative) to the extend that tabulating MOTM would be easy.”
“My MOTM goes to See Chiang: Fantastic work rate from See Chiang for his tremendous effort in doubling the roles as stopper and midfielder at times, winning a lot of possessions and covering a lot of ground...”
“Unanimous decision. MOTM to See Chiang – when everyone wilted in the hot sun he was still chasing all the balls”
“See Chiang. Provide solid defence in stopper position and also help cover midfield area well.”
“See Chiang, dominated the midfield in his stopper role. Broke up most of the opponents attacks with his tackles and tireless running. His link up play with our midfield was also instrumental in initiating most of our attacks.”
“See Chiang. Though he didn’t score nor make the killer pass, he was all over the pitch and never stopped running. It was his grit which inspired the team”
“Motm: See Chiang. 2nd half play in the stopper/defensive mid position was exceptional.Cut out all the play in the middle n good relaying of passes n runs upfield.”
“Motm - See Chiang. No words can describe his performance”

Btw, have you seen Ng playing attacking midfield??? Bet you never.... because of his one shrewd pass across the penalty box, Teck Wah had the easiest job to tap in our 3rd goal which effectively killed off the game.....Our Mr Hairy Chest got 3 votes for his evergreen performance:
“MOM to Ng for showing that pure determination = frozen margherita. At what seemed like a very hot day at the construction site for Marine Sunday, it transformed into an inspiring beach outing with Ng upping the tempo when most of our tanks were dry. The vodka we needed that led up to everything else.” “Ng for one assist and some timely interception in the hot sun”
“Mom is ng for his never say die attitude, most importantly for his crucial role on the set up of the last 2 goals.”

Chung Wen had 1 nomination:
“Chung Wen. He practically headed every floated balls in the air and this made our defense a solid rock”