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| FIXTURE HISTORY |
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| Season 75 | L | 3 - 2 | Tournament (Group Phase) |
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Torlak Slog
Egan Again
Grilled Birds recorded their seventh win in nine rounds of World Battle competition this term, as they dismissed Serbian II.2 club FK Torlak Kumodraž by three clear goals. It would be anything but a cakewalk, coming as it did in the midst of a sleetstorm, and there were legitimate concerns as to whether the match should be scheduled, before the match officials gave it the final go-ahead.
FKTK were the more used to such chilly conditions, and their 30 year-old Chinese midfielder Guan Jin more than most, as he held court opposite
Kalle ter Berg. Their forward pair of Vasfi Ziver and Ally Chappell were probably somewhat restricted by the slick surface, on the contrary, with both being known for more-delicate moves - few of which would be possible here.
Not that the Birds' representatives were much better off, with Mudaliar and Kalki themselves hardly being able to keep their footing when going at anything faster than a march. Being professionals, the players would quickly figure out what worked, and changed their style accordingly - which in practice meant plenty of hoofing the ball upfield, and trying to prise a wedge open for a shot.
This was admittedly entertaining in spurts, with a few like Grilled's
Moey Xin Seng and FKTK's Florian Hipfinger relishing their sudden importance. Both excelled in the many aerial battles that took place, but to minimal effect, as stringing together more than a couple of passes afterwards would prove a tall order. It would be FKTK who first managed a serious attempt on goal, with Aussie wingman Josh Waaka planting one just wide in the 34th minute. Encouraged, they would win a free-kick on the return, and Mihai Sotir would again place it narrowly off.
Those misses were as good as miles, and Grilled's goal would remain unbreached. Their opponents' raised confidence would instead be their undoing, as they were caught undermanned when
Chan Ze Han beat it at a rapid clip, straight up the middle. This pace was something that Jerzy Moser apparently thought impossible, as he tracked Chan as best as he could, but not nearly enough to prevent the incoming assist to
Moey Xin Seng.
Moey would end up with a soaked face after that messy finish, but he had put the ball past Cătălin Văleanu, and that was all that mattered. It was uncertain whether that mishap had contributed to his replacement by
Bernie Egan for the second half, but in any case Chan would inherit the captain's armband, before going back to what he did best - sowing confusion in the opposing defence.
Chances remained scarce, with the exception being
Chu Xin Lee's buoyant charge about four minutes after kick-off, which was sadly batted aside by Văleanu. Ten more minutes of drudgery would be next, to which
Eren Serpin addressed by making a double substitution:
Wu Jinglong - who hadn't had his best day - off for
Cyril Künzler, and
Kalle ter Berg - who had been made to look second-best by Guan Jin for once - for
Neeraj Muthyala.
The impact was instant as Künzler ventured forth with an unbridled enthusiasm usually found in those half his age, to the extent that former Peruvian youth international Nelson Pancorvo found him far more trouble than Wu. The Polish veteran would simply refuse to stay down after being tripped in the 67th minute, and the referee certainly wasn't about to stop his continued advance. Gonzalo Trevilla was wary of getting too close once Künzler entered the penalty area, which however allowed him to pick
Bernie Egan out at the back post.
That was 2-0, and Künzler served further notice with a try from an acute angle, that wasn't all that far away. It would be three-nil some five minutes later, as
Salah Kamel found the top corner with a magnificent lob. Ally Chappell tried to find a consolation, but
Massoud Dob wasn't in the mood, and the Grilled goalkeeper repeated the trick in added time by swiping the ball off the Englishman's boots.
