Rollin's Revenge
MacKinnon Clipped
Rollin' Thunder gained some measure of payback for their 1-4 defeat last week at The Cooking Pot, by beating Grilled by four goals to three at their home ground, Takemikazuchi. The hosts were on a high after smacking Red Chaos in the Cup, and it looked as if they would continue in like fashion against a strange-looking Grilled side, when Juho Hiekka gave them the lead after just two minutes.
Grilled reverted to their classic 3-5-2 for the game in an attempt to gain some parity in midfield, but formations went out of the window as Robson Khumalo beat his man down the left and raced towards goal at a crazy speed. Talib had little choice but to commit, leaving Hiekka free, and the classy Finn had no trouble flicking Khumalo's through ball past Valdir.
The visitors kept their chins up, and began to see more of the ball as they stabilised the game. MacKinnon was taken down late by Ahmad Tharmini bin Saleh in midfield, a rash challenge that warranted the yellow given. Han Kok had the presence of mind to take the kick quickly, and the young
Ciro Penati glided past Chua Min Fu seemingly effortlessly to send the ball into Deng's net.
Grilled spurned a great chance to come out on top, after a long goal-kick from Valdir was won in the air by Penati, and tipped invitingly into the path of Rotteveel. Pure speed appeared to have contributed another goal, but Deng proved to be no slouch either as he just managed to reach the ball first, thanks to good positioning. The Birds would regret that missed opportunity soon, as Khumalo's corner kick was placed into the net thanks to Ahmad Tharmini's solid header.
Another close call would come right in the next minute, as Grilled flooded forward from the kick-off and created a superb chance for
Zoltán Árva, coming around the left side, but Deng somehow managed to recover and push Árva's cautious effort out of bounds. Rotteveel would eventually get the equaliser late in the half, as he turned Parker cheekily before lighting up the stadium with a cutting drive.
That arguably gave Grilled the psychological advantage going into half-time, a benefit that Hiekka tried to take away by scoring deep in injury time. Unfortunately, he got his feet mixed up and allowed Lik-Tsun to usher the ball away, and compounded that mistake by slicing the defender down for a rather pointless booking.
Grilled appeared well and truly back in it on the hour, as
Dani Spirig made the pass of the match, hitting it inch-perfect for Subri to take in his stride as he blazed towards the Rollin' goal. Having put two past Deng last week, the Malaysian had good reason to hold his nerve, and expertly released his shot an instant before Deng dived for the ball, to put Grilled ahead for the first time.
That didn't go down well with the expectant home fans, who saw the possibility of Arrogancae running away with the title right there and then.
Quah Han Kok did nothing for their nerves, as he sped down the left side after a Rollin' player carelessly lost possession in his own half. Quah's venomous strike might have gone in on another day, but this time Deng was up to it, and even managed to hold on.
Juho Hiekka then brought cheer back to his club's supporters, as he cleverly got himself away from Árva, and then lifted it across Grilled's six-yard box to his unopposed strike partner Gerdas Vedeckis. The Lithuanian made no mistake with his sole, sending the ball into Valdir's net before the goalie had time to turn his head.
A promising half for Grilled went from bad to worse, after Scotsman
John MacKinnon pulled up awkwardly after going to ground for a tackle. Mirchev entered for him, but could not establish a steadying influence as MacKinnon had. It was left for Hiekka to make himself Rollin's hero, as he combined well with Khumalo once more and finished from a tight angle for the ultimate victory.
