Birds Soar Highest
Grilled Birds' impeccable form ran on into the Trophy of Legends, as they finished the first battery of three matches with the full nine points, and a +14 goal difference. This had them hanging pretty at 77th of 8290 participants, with
Hovaness Noubaryan quietly hopeful of the team's chances at again making the final stages.
They started against third division Faroese side Damarnir, with
Moey Xin Seng restored to the starting lineup, and a three-goal blitz in the sixth to eighth minutes saw Muthyala, and then Moey and Egan, rock the hosts. Damarnir settled somewhat and would eventually pull one back through Dutch veteran Renzo Adrichem after Egan's second, only to fall 1-5 to
Bilal Mohammad Harun's last-minute effort.
German Division Six challengers Heinz-Racing.de were swept six for nothing yet, as
Chan Ze Han shone at right forward with a brace. Chan would repeat this feat - together with
Cyril Künzler - against Polish V.107 Team Legia, who did however gain a fine last wind; Paweł Pietrusiewicz and Giuseppe Curti claimed the final goals in a match that ended 7-3 to Grilled.
Farmer Bunnies in contrast endured a frustratingly indifferent day, even if it did begin nicely, with a 2-0 shutout of Argentine Division Five club Deportivo ki, in which
Kwek Yun Jie and
Ibrahim Zahran Al-Maashany scored either side of half-time. Turkish fourth divisioners SariyerFC then turned this scoreline on its head, as they punished the Buns through Jesús Paniagua and Konrad Stieb. A tedious nil-all draw against German Division Six side Fortuna Trier 1895 followed, as
Christophe Fouche made it no easier by getting himself sent off, fifteen minutes from time.
Team captain
Tham Leng Teck, who had been useful only in bursts on the right, blamed the team's poor displays on injuries to key regulars. "We are badly missing some of our top guys - that'll hurt any club."
Grilled International followed the same pattern, though they began with the defeat, 0-1 to Polish VI.91 outfit FC Dulers, who rested on Sasso Vertneg's 23rd minute counterattacking strike. A 1-1 at fellow H.I. team HAI ROMANIA! was next, as
Arcadi Sansalvador's header against the Barbados fifth divisioners would soon be levelled by Gabriel Kusz. Victory would finally arrive versus another H.I. representative in Poland's Joint Division, who never came back from
Osertz Indurain's direct goal, a minute after kick-off.
