Charmed Changi
Ulf Fiver
Wilson Kearney did the donkey work, but in front of goal it was
Ulf Hjortlind who could do no wrong as he struck all five goals in the encounter at Changi Bowl. Grilled's offensive intentions were made clear with
Zhan Ju-Hau and
Au-Yong Siu-Yue on the team sheet, but Rangers were confident, coming off two high-scoring Cup wins, and team captain Alcántara's mind appeared not to be wholly on the game as he caused some frantic moments with slipshod defending. Hjortlind calmed things down when he converted a glorious pass from
Asher Stanton in the 27th, then followed up with a second thanks to some amateurish defending three minutes later, and wasted no time in rounding off his hat-trick as he switched flanks with Kearney to bewilder Rangers' Kam-Kee. Kearney's only chance in the game came sandwiched between Hjortlind's first two goals, but he put it over the bar - not that the fans grudged him for that, given his otherwise stellar performance.
In the second half, the backline went to sleep as the first-team pair of Ju-Hau and Stanton guided the ebullent Siu-Yue to control the midfield throughly. Grilled were over-enthusiastic and peppered the Rangers goal with hopeful shots, leaving Hjortlind to show the way with a flutter kick from Kearney's assist.
Milen Kolesov flaunted his promise as a winger as he patrolled the left flank tirelessly and appeared to have been rewarded when he went down heavily right on the penalty area. He received a yellow for diving instead, but could afford a smile as Grilled were four up by then. 29 year old veteran
Ma Dai-Lin issued a warning to upstarts eyeing his customary right wing spot when he outlasted Jen-hua in a race down the field, and even delivered a magical inswinging cross into the bargain. Hjortlind went to air unhindered, and with his red hot form the ball could go nowhere else but into the net. Grilled laid back for the final fifteen minutes, but Hjortlind wanted the club scoring record for a match and when a free kick opportunity came up, Alcántara and Dewilde almost fell over getting out of his way to let him take it. Only this once was Hjortlind denied, as Rangers' goalkeeper Lin Yi-Ren executed an impossible save.
