Villagers Plundered
Safri Serves Notice
Grilled were never in trouble against a spirited but limited Kampung United team, and ascended to the top of the table for the first time this season despite the visitors managing to score twice as they did the last time the two met in a friendly; The fast-developing Mohd Safri caught the eye with two first-half goals to put the Birds on easy street.
Consecutive defeats to heimu XI and FC ~ vile hadn't done Kampung United much good, and The Cooking Pot wasn't the best place to put a halt to their run of three league defeats, even if it turned out to be mostly empty no thanks to the weather. 30 year-old Chilean left winger José Esteban Cavada, just arrived for S$1.7 million, gave the travelling fans something to look forward to, but the return of Valdir made it all that much harder for him to make a splash.
Anticipating Kampung packing the middle, where the partnership of Au Shun Ting and Rosman bin Fadzim has made things difficult for most forwards, Grilled decided on scheduling many wide runs to spread that defence thin. It took some time, but the understanding between Penati and Mohd Safri on the right finally got the better of an overwhelmed Rosman, who clearly expected slightly more help from Cavada.
Mohd Safri's first came when he wheeled in cleverly horizontally across goal, losing Rosman and opening himself up for the pass. Slovenian central defender Vito Salama tried to block his path, but Safri was far too agile, and pushed the ball past him and sidefooted it under Fabinho Seridó.
For his next goal, Mohd Safri went it himself after considering his options on getting the ball to the goalline. It appeared wasteful since he had Rotteveel calling for it while completely unmarked, but Safri's execution was immaculate as he stuck the ball into the far corner from a narrow angle.
Bögengang then made it four in three matches as he barged through the harried Kampung defence in the 37th minute, and
Ciro Penati put the outcome beyond doubt as he combined brilliantly with a superbly confident Safri to set up a simple tap-in across a befuddled Seridó.
Kampung United found it within them to stage a renaissance in the dying minutes of the half, and managed to embarrass a Grilled side that had switched off after going four up. There was nobody within metres of Mickaël Marchant as the German striker lined up an accurate header down past Valdir, which earned the Grilled defence an earful from the returning custodian.
Despite that, the Birds refused to wake up, and they fell prey to a near-identical mistake on a corner kick less than sixty seconds later. Au Shun Ting whipped it in at pace, and after Han Kok couldn't quite get his head to it, Branbilla and Talib allowed themselves to be pushed aside by the charged-up Spanish forward, Alejandro Navarro Ros, whose resounding header sent Valdir the wrong way.
By then,
Han Lik-Tsun was out screaming at his team, and the Grilled players could hardly wait for half-time to come, and once it did they scurried off into the tunnel looking suitably chastened. Whatever was said, or left unsaid, during the break succeeded in turning the side's attitude around, and
Gleb Dorogan took the wind out of Kampung United's sails with a stylish looping header from a Penati cross.
Now mollified, Han signalled for Rotteveel and Bögengang to make way for young guns Torsson and Salieri, who were under strict orders to defend from the front before having their fun. Tellingly, they automatically deferred to Mohd Safri when Grilled were awarded a free-kick in a good position, although the Singaporean sensation blew his shot at a hat-trick as his rising shot never looked like hitting the target.
Kampung United's determination returned as Grilled again wound down their tempo, but this time Ros wasn't able to repeat his first-half feat as he volleyed the ball into the heavens after Wilstra hit a through ball into space. Rosman also attempted to get his name in lights, but his 83rd minute strike from just five metres was inexplicably clawed away by Valdir in a save that was hugely appreciated by what was left of the crowd.
