Grilled 5 - 3 Singapore
21487 fans braved the pouring rain at
Love Street Stadium.
Bartłomiej Machalski was the appointed referee with assistance provided by
Jean Beyer de Ryke and
Kasper Gmyrek. The pitch was a disaster, due to all the rain. This spelled problems for the more sophisticated players, who usually could rely on speed or technique. For those relying on grit and strength, it actually meant an edge. The match took place on neutral ground. The following players took the field for Grilled:
Germanakos -
Keng Chuan,
其材 (Qicai) -
Reddy,
Thach,
Chitre,
An Keng,
Trindade -
Teck Fu,
Kwang Tse,
Khairul.
The following players had been chosen by Singapore:
Westerlaan -
Walsh,
Ryaboshapko,
Averett -
Yeng Hock,
Sáenz Hernández,
Gaudério,
Eloidze,
MacPatrick -
Rautakallio,
Veerma.
It was to be a contest between two different football philosophies, since the home team started the game with a 2-5-3 formation while the visitors instead opted for 3-5-2. Grilled took the lead 7 minutes in, as
Chad Thach broke through on the left and put the 1 - 0 shot just beyond the reach of the outstretched keeper. After 18 minutes, there was a bit of a mixup on the field as Singapore found themselves out of position and their organisation level dropped to inadequate (5). Grilled put themselves up 2 - 0 when
Gandhik Chitre broke through on the right, leaving the entire defence trailing in his wake. The home side's
Gandhik Chitre came close to extending the lead 23 minutes into the game. His shot came in from the right hand side but
Tsjitse Westerlaan managed to save it with an unbelievable reaction stop. After 25 minutes,
Brian 'Was Born' Reddy put Grilled ahead 3 - 0 when he rose to head in a cross from the right wing. With 35 minutes gone, Singapore had a free kick in a decent position. Despite this being a great chance for a shot, they tried a cheeky move intended to bypass the defence. However,
Dmitriy Ryaboshapko did not manage to connect with it cleanly and the ball went out. 3 - 0 was the score after the first half. Grilled had most of the ball, with 54 percent of possession.
During the break, Singapore's coach went through the team's tactics yet again, getting them up to solid (7) organisation.
Chia Kwang Tse increased the lead for Grilled to 4 - 0, getting a head onto a hooked ball from the right. The ball looked to have taken a deflection on the way in, but he's claiming it! The visitors got one back when
Robert Veerma finished off a pass from the left and scored after 56 minutes. 4 - 1 was the score. After 59 minutes,
Aw Keng Chuan sent the corner kick right to
夏 (Ha) 其材 (Qicai) who headed it sharply past the keeper. 5 - 1! A bit later, Singapore's
Seah Yeng Hock easily reduced the lead to 5 - 2 after a misunderstanding in the home side's central defence. A great save by keeper
Tsjitse Westerlaan after 61 minutes kept the visitors in the game after
Hwang Teck Fu struck from the left with a real cannonball. After several obvious shirt pulling incidents,
Chia Kwang Tse got himself booked. The manager of Grilled was not happy. Grilled's
Gandhik Chitre saw his fine effort strike the top of the bar following some good work up the middle by his teammates after 67 minutes. The Grilled players could smell victory in the air.
Chia Kwang Tse wasn't in a hurry to leave the field as he was substituted for
Chan Ze Han after 89 minutes. The referee announced 2 minutes of stoppage time, giving fans a slim hope that their team could get one more attack in before this was all over.
Robert Veerma acted with superior experience when, 90 minutes into the match, he predicted a pass, intercepted it and then finished off with a goal. 5 - 3 for Singapore! The match ends 5 - 3. Possession in the forty-five minutes was dominated by Grilled, with 52 percent of the ball.
The most dominating Grilled player was without a doubt
Mohd Marzuki Khairul.
Dimitris Germanakos on the other hand, had a terrible day. Most important Singapore player was
Robert Veerma. However,
Myles MacPatrick made a disastrous appearance.