Roll On
Quah Saves
Grilled gave themselves the chance to extend their stay in the S-League for awhile longer, as they closed out a torrid season with a hard-fought win against Rollin' Thunder to surge into sixth place. Even some of Grilled's own fans weren't convinced they could stay up, as they went into the last day bottom of the table, but the players showed heart and took their fates into their own hands.
It didn't look possible in the early minutes, as Rollin' appeared determined to send Grilled down.
Subri bin Ku Zainol remained out as expected, but that was not the issue in the first fifteen minutes as the visitors absolutely hammered Grilled's defence. Khumalo could have shocked Grilled after just sixty-odd seconds as he sprinted unopposed down the middle, and only a rare last-ditch sliding tackle by Lik-Tsun kept him from having an open shot.
Grilled tried to hold the ball, but there was to be no respite. Winger Franz Wallner took full advantage of Grilled's tight midfield four, as both Branbilla and MacKinnon naturally drifted into the center, as he covered acres of space down an empty right flank. A quick one-two saw him bear down on Valdir's goal, and only a swift swipe by the Brazilian goalie kept Rollin' from going in front.
It seemed more and more improbable that Grilled could hold out for much longer, and Rollin' indeed broke through in the 12th minute through Iskandar Zulkernain bin Ahmad Mokshinon. The leftback got himself lost in the crowd as Rollin' set up stall in front of Grilled's penalty area, and was first to Batista's through ball.
Strangely enough, going behind strengthened Grilled's resolve, and they began to fight their way back to parity. Vice-captain
Quah Han Kok in particular displayed his leadership qualities, with his spirited running not only bringing a roar of approval from the home crowd, but also resulted in a booking for Franz Wallner, who was late with his tackle.
Grilled still never looked very likely to score, and were fortunate when Rotteveel drew a crude block from a defender in the Rollin' penalty area. The Dutchman had nowhere to go, and only Zainuddin bin Fadzim will know why he bothered to place his body in the way. Sid did not complain, and set the penalty kick hard and true into the bottom corner in front of a frenzied gallery.
Rollin' were still the better side, though close coverage by Grilled's players limited their chances somewhat. They were good value for a second goal as an astounding through ball was chased down by midfielder Jurjan de Man with Grilled playing a very high line. Valdir was unexpectedly blindingly fast on his feet too, however, and got to the ball a fraction ahead, just enough to smash it against de Man's legs into touch.
At half-time, Grilled's squad would be buoyed by the news that results in the other match were going their way. While a defeat for either Isle of Flames or seluraralc would suit Grilled just fine, mist could not win for Grilled to have any chance, and thankfully GeoStarZ United FC didn't pull any punches. mist had taken the lead, but a sweet piece of individual skill by György Szekeres just before the break gave Grilled hope.
All that would be for naught if Grilled were unable to beat Rollin', but Quah would take care of this little detail. Having grown into his role at the club, the midfielder reminded the spectators that he had not completely mellowed, as he recklessly leaped at a short pass from Branbilla that was on the verge of being intercepted. The leap paid off, and Quah even managed to hold off a chasing defender on the way to firing a superb grounder past Deng Wei-Ming.
The goal, coming as it did barely three minutes after it was announced that GeoStarZ had taken the lead against mist, whipped the crowd into ecstasy. It could have been more as Spirig brought down a corner for
Nawaz Talib to finish off, but the Pakistani defender hit it into the sky. No worries there as the three points were all that mattered, though.
