WonderMans 1 - 8 Grilled
The spectators didn't look too happy about the constant raining at the stadium today. 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 following players had been selected:
Bruno -
Navas,
Kraushofer -
Darbey,
Poisson,
Smets,
Eade,
Fagererberg -
Pleić,
Khunji,
McGeady.
The following players took the field:
Dob -
Webb,
Panigrahi -
Künzler,
Xin Lee,
Mohammad Harun,
Muthyala,
Dong Chu -
Egan,
Parvathaneni,
Xin Seng.
The coaches were in sync today, as both teams lined up in a 2-5-3 formation. Some good play on the left wing created an opportunity for the visitors 13 minutes into the match, and
Neeraj Muthyala wasn't about to waste it. He got past the defenders and fired a shot that the keeper just missed. 0 - 1 for the visitors.
Jonathan Darbey was just a finger's width away from an equalizer for WonderMans with a strike from the left, but
Massoud Dob managed to deflect the shot out for a corner.
Edgardo Navas still has a lot to learn. For instance, he should know not to make such feeble passes in front of
Kalki Parvathaneni, who easily scored for Grilled, making it 0 - 2. With 36 minutes played,
Bernie Egan nearly put the visitors up by one more as he broke through in the middle and fired from just outside the box, but his shot whizzed just over the bar. The home team's task just got even harder after
Cyril Künzler buried the penalty kick. Grilled lead 0 - 3 after 39 minutes.
Moey Xin Seng came close to extending the visitors' lead when he found himself completely unmarked in front of the goal after a pass through the middle, but his attempted chip over
Giovanni Bruno just kept rising and landed in the relieved crowd. The teams went for the halftime break at 0 - 3. Grilled set the tempo, maintaining 64 percent of possession.
WonderMans supporters found their voice 53 minutes in as good work down the right got the ball to
Jeremie Smets who reduced the visitors' lead to 1 - 3. 60 minutes into the game, Grilled wanted to bring some new energy to their game.
Bernie Egan gave
Islom Davlatov a quick hug as he left the field. With the clock showing 60 minutes, the fourth official held up the substitution board.
Chu Xin Lee looked to see that it was his number in red, so he made his way over to the sideline and swapped out for
Chan Ze Han, though he would have liked to continue. After 70 minutes a combination in the middle resulted in a through ball for
Moey Xin Seng who increased Grilled's lead to 1 - 4. The away team's
Heng Dong Chu took advantage of a mistake on the home side's right after 71 minutes increasing Grilled's lead to 1 - 5. After 73 minutes, Grilled's
Kalki Parvathaneni burst through the central defense and let loose a cannonball of a shot, scoring for 1 - 6. 80 minutes into the match,
Heng Dong Chu came through the middle and almost added to his team's lead, but the shot went wide. The head of
Moey Xin Seng connected with a beautiful corner kick after 82 minutes. He wasn't shooting, though, but rather passing to
Heng Dong Chu of Grilled who buried the shot for 1 - 7. Grilled's
Kalki Parvathaneni received a ball slotted perfectly through the home side's central defense after 84 minutes, and chipped it past the helpless keeper to increase the lead to 1 - 8. The away fans won't regret traveling for this one! He'd already scored two, and with the third,
Kalki Parvathaneni had a hattrick! After 85 minutes, the WonderMans coach wanted to see a new face on the field, waving
Edgardo Navas off.
Klaas-Jan Ballegooij took his place. The players were tired, but when the referee announced that there would be 2 minutes of added time, they welcomed the extra opportunity to make an impact. The match ends 1 - 8. Nikki Minaj appeared on the Jumbotron wearing pink lipstick, a towering pile of platinum-white hair, and a pair of soccer balls. WonderMans's top performer was clearly
Darko Pleić. Even six year old fans were wincing at the poor play by
Nils-Olof Fagererberg today. Most important Grilled player was
Moey Xin Seng. Speaking of stinking up the place,
Gilbert Webb sure smelled like the bottom of Batman's shoe after a night of crimefighting in Gotham.