Almost Daybreak
Last Minute Sweat
Division Four City club Sunny Beach Boys gave Grilled a small scare when they pulled two goals back in the dying minutes, but since Grilled were 4-1 up they could just about afford that loss of concentration. The hosts' recent S$3.6 million signing from Hungary, the lithe winger Szilveszter Frigyes was magnificent on the day as he produced all sorts of trouble together with Dutch striker Cyril Elderman, but Grilled were just too dominant in midfield.
Grilled had the good fortune to find the net on their first attack of note, as an inspired
Lee Jie Siong began running at defenders down the right side. The normally cautious
Fabian Bona took the licence to surge ahead, perhaps making the most of a valuable starting opportunity, and was rewarded when Jie Siong's cross was only half cut out for him to scuff past local goalie Lee Nie Puay.
Rotteveel then collected his third yellow of the season when he engaged in a shoving match with forceful central defender Assrof bin Sheikh Ibrahim, which will see him sit out Sunday's meeting with RaZer. Sid obliged the away fans with a thunderous effort cracked into the roof of the net, as Grilled looked all set for a berth in the last sixteen.
The Boys called that into question when Canadian Luc Lambert pumped a low and hard corner kick into the six yard box that Assrof booted into Valdir's face. Grilled's Brazillian goalkeeper was stunned for a moment, and the aptly named goal assassin Filomeno Killer was on hand to tap the rebound in.
Rotteveel ensured that he would take a goal along with him during his enforced absence as he slammed in a volley from a neat Paullin forward pass, and Subri put the tie to bed with a monstrous strike that flew into the top corner. Or at least until the 87th minute, when Szilveszter Frigyes wasn't closed down by a tired Bona, and the winger managed a seeking ball that Rod Alonzo got to just before Valdir to make it 2-4.
Rather than seeing that as another consolation, the home team made a run for it from the kick-off, and won a free-kick in a dangerous position. Lambert sliced it cleverly under Grilled's jumping wall, but Valdir was on to it and dived early to push it out for a corner.
The corner was quickly taken and cleared by Lik-Tsun, but only to the waiting Sjon Hehenkamp. The Belgian slid a slide-rule pass through the middle to the breaking Szilveszter, who made himself a yard of space and got off a splendid grounder before getting sandwiched by two defenders. This injury-time goal wasn't sufficient, though, as Subri expertly shielded the ball at the opposite corner to run the final seconds out.
