Grilled International secured their second league crown tonight, with a game to spare, after they recorded a 4-2 win against Germany's Gute Freunde before a capacity home crowd. Alessandro Rossi's 79th minute winner for Schorschl against Black Trapper meant that both those teams are on 28 points, four behind International's 32.

That achievement had not been painless though, with Wang Chu Chi having to leave the match with a badly stubbed foot in the 30th minute, though that did lead to Fausto Perono making it 2-0. Defender Yao Erguo would later make the long-term injury list with a broken ankle, while the visitors' Adam Hundorfer will likewise sit out the preseason, having sustained a severely pulled back.

Neither casualty would allow their condition to dampen International's joy, and the pitch would become an impromptu fairground after results elsewhere filtered in. "We've all been eyeing this success." key midfielder Wang Hanxuan smiled, a gifted jester's cap worn jauntily over his brow. "Here's to many more to come!"

There were other milestones that were more quietly observed back in Singapore, with Tham Leng Teck earning his 40th national cap in a one-all draw against Moldova, with the debuting Mahesh Vookanti finding the Lions' equalizer. Tham would even end the game as skipper, after being handed the armband by F.C. Fluitje's Chandran Shetty.

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