Passionate Play
Set Piece Battle
Incredibly, Grilled won a second friendly in a row, though they did it with their first-team midfielders.
John MacKinnon's rehabilitation continued with the run-out against Dutch Division Six club Schenkels Team of Passion, but it was Branbilla who made all the difference as the Birds dominated throughout.
The Scotsman, whose best form had been solely missed in Grilled's league adventures, did advertise his strength with a seventh minute rocket of a free-kick that curled ever so slightly past Giancarlo Greep in the STOP goal. His job done, he returned to breaking up moves in midfield, though Branbilla did most of the chopping and duly got a yellow card for it.
The home side counterattacked cannily whenever the opportunity presented itself, and right winger Enrico Gelderlander's delicious cross was snapped up by his teammate on the opposite wing, Eberhart van den Abeelen, in the 39th minute.
With the score level again, Grilled stepped it up, and won another free-kick two minutes later on the edge of the box. This time, MacKinnon stepped over it, and Jianyong floated a tempting cross to the near post. The Birds' machinations were far from done, as the well-prepared Salieri headed it across the six-yard box on cue, where
Ronny Behr was on hand to tap the ball in.
Grilled's reserves were on a high with the team showing much more spirit than had been seen in them for some time, and the hosts found it necessary to make a tactical substitution at half-time, with Raymon van Dalen coming on for the similarly burly Driekus van der Maat in central defence, and the captain's armband passed between them.
The switch paid dividends as the new skipper thought quickly when Mirchev fouled Nisstrand on a quick counter on the hour mark; without waiting for the whistle, he took a short run-up and accurately sent the ball over Bao-Tam, who had come out to protest the decision. Bao-Tam was left with something else to complain about, but the goal rightly stood.
Again, the equaliser didn't last for long, as Grilled went in front again on their very next attack. Another set piece was given away by the STOP defence, and the Birds' players spent some time huddled over it as they formulated a plan. It worked to perfection, as they pinged the ball across the box a couple of times, before a completely unmarked
Zheng Lihai gleefully tucked it past the goalkeeper.
Perhaps mindful of how dangerous free-kicks could be by now,
Li Shunguo willingly accepted a caution for delaying the taking of a kick, earning himself some catcalls from the otherwise good-natured support. Raymon van Dalen appeared to be on a one-man crusade, though, and blasted the next dead ball straight into the bottom corner, as STOP drew level for the third time.
There were chances aplenty for both sides to steal the game, with Lihai's grounder saved by Greep in a one-on-one situation, while the hosts' Patric Nisstrand missed from just ten metres out with Bao-Tam at his mercy.
Fittingly, it was yet another free-kick that decided the match, with Gabryelski tripping up Salieri at the foot of the penalty area. MacKinnon stepped up menacingly, but sneakily chipped the ball into the middle of the box as Grilled players rushed madly in. A few desperate shots and blocks later, Branbilla had the last word as he got the ball into the net.
