Kickers Ride Luck
It would not be a flawless opening for the Birds in the Supporter Week Trophy either, as they suffered defeat in their fourth game, against German H.I. II.4 representatives Worldwide Kickers 2017. It was a rather rosier picture before that at least, with Grilled beating their previous challengers by at least a three-goal margin.
Portuguese Division Four longtimers SLB REDONDOS were first up, and the Red-and-Whites found no purchase against the rampant Birds, a single early attempt by David Filipe Pimentel Santos besides.
Gilbert Webb scored from open play in the 32nd minute and closed from a penalty, with
Bilal Mohammad Harun adding his second-half brace towards a 5-0 whitewash.
Bernie Egan, who was responsible for the remaining goal, carried on in like fashion in a 4-1 win over Slovenian fifth divisioners NK Crvena Zvezda. Egan would be substituted out at half-time in all three matches, not exactly putting paid to whispers of a possible departure, though his replacement
Vikram Mudaliar was hardly on top form. Mudaliar would finally break his tournament duck with two late strikes against the suitably-clad Black Knight, of the Scottish Division Four. The Knights took the lead twice, first through Darwish Gholoom's maneuvering and then through Kevin MacGarrow's meaty header, but Grilled turned it around in the final twenty minutes, for a 6-3 final result.
Nothing went right for the Birds against Worldwide somehow, beginning with Canadian winger Eliott Pronovost's worldie of a shot in the 28th minute, that left
Jānis Salmiņš blameless.
Teo Chuan Yong somehow slipped on a golden opportunity for an immediate reply, and not even a red card for Worldwide captain David Aguilante helped.
Chu Xin Lee would equalize just after the hour mark, only for two more unstoppable efforts to come.
Sølve Lunde bemoaned three of Worldwide Kickers' four shots on target finding the back of the net. "I'd say they would not have been able to pull those shots off nine times out of ten in training with no pressure on." the defender said. "But it happens."
The Bunnies had very mixed fortunes, as they began their day with a one-all draw against former Al Kuwayt Consolation Cup winners, Al Shaquili Sporting Club. The Division Three outfit had Saad Wahid cancel
Vishnu Tallapaka's free-kick opener, as they ran a full-on press. Tallapaka was on target again in another rather negative affair against Czech IV.18 club Dummiiidci, before they were found out by a Gerald Hennel brace for Swiss Division Six side FC Basel-Stadt.
They then ended the day as they had begun it, with another draw. Dutch VI.521 champions Sportclub Charley at least arguably provided as much excitement as the other three matches put together, which allowed
Vitaliy Efendiev to salvage a result dramatically, with his improvised finish from
Djoko Tambusai's deep cross, just six minutes from time. Efendiev had been wasteful before that, or the Buns might otherwise have been cruising comfortably after
Aitykul Zaripbekov's opener.
Grilled International went undefeated with two victories and two draws, with the latter coming first. Swiss V.150 contestants The Lättianers had Mattie Edwards break through on the counter in the 22nd minute, but it didn't take too long for
Wang Hanxuan to level from a corner, with a touch on by
Arcadi Sansalvador. It was 2-2 against German Division Six side FV Grün-Grün Lintorf next, as a vigorous
Ragib Banović performance saw him with a brace by the 12th minute, only for International to be caught out by Rudolf Ozonenko, four minutes from time.
Well, that couldn't have done much for
Didi Reidenbach's mood, but after a walkover against just-relegated Belgian Division Five side Fc. Sjkeiiln, International would record their first real win of the tournament, by thrashing 1.FC Domažlice 4-1. The Czech V.36 runners-up got one back through Mário Chaves after first-half goals from
Sazwan bin Hj Muhd Salleh,
Hardi bin Besar and Wang again, with
Li Xin Chi racing up the left to close the scoring in the 72nd.
