Eagles Game
Tsai's Trick
Once again under rainy weather, Grilled Birds achieved a respectable 4-all draw away to Geylang Eagles United, but the match in truth belonged to Geylang's Tsai Jie-Quan who demonstrated just why he strikes fear even at the highest levels with a quality hat-trick to snatch a point for his team.
Geylang kept faith with the team that went down 0-4 at The Cooking Pot last week, while Grilled reshuffled the midfield with Noor Yadah given a chance in the center and young inners Blissenbach and Siu-Yue given leeway on the periphery. Zhan, to some indispensible in wet conditions, gave way to Aznan. The home team had decided to counter-attack this time, and it worked its effect as Grilled could not gain a foothold in their half as they had done before. Geylang's Aristide Ditã got into trouble early as he got a yellow card for restraining Noor Yadah unfairly.
Shen Kek-Tjiang at long last scored his first competitive goal after three seasons without one, as he booted an unconvincing ball at Adkins on a fast break. It was enough to put Grilled in front, though.
Johan Dewilde had a golden chance to break Geylang's resistance when he was left alone with the ball in front of goal after an incisive Grilled attack, but he lingered a second too long and Lim Fui-Gna was there to block and clear.
33 year-old Tomas Torsson flaunted the fire in his old legs when his long strides put ground between himself and his pursuers on a counterattack.
Hang Bao-Tam came out to meet him bravely, but to no avail. Worse, Bao-Tam twisted his ankle in the process, forcing Huel-sheng to take his place between the posts. Huel-sheng was no match at all for Tsai Jie-Quan when the latter shook off Dewilde on another fast break, and Geylang was in the lead. Hjortlind evened it out before the half-time break as he made no mistake from the spot after Blissenbach got held down during a corner.
Grilled began the second half strongly, with
Wilson Kearney quick on the draw to put Grilled ahead in the 56th minute.
Nui Pakpao pitched in with a rare goal which came of being in the right place at the right time, thanks to a wayward pass. Just as Grilled appeared to be cruising, the excellent Tellskär had his game curbed when he got booked in a moment of rashness for inapporpriate behaviour, silly for someone who should have known better.
Thunderbolts then struck as Tsai Jie-Quan stopped biding his time, rifling a shot into the top corner as Grilled's defence was pulled apart by the movement of three forwards. A couple of minutes later, Hu Yueh-shiou tore down his flank to cross unhindered, and Jie-Quan's predatory instincts put him in the right place to head past a hapless Huel-sheng. Grilled was handed opportunities to steal a win as first Aristide Ditã got sent off for a second bookable offence right after the goal, and then Geylang's influential Canadian sweeper Lim Fui-Gna had to leave the field for treatment for a bruised shin, but nothing came of their frantic attacks and the game ended rightfully tied.
