Clementi Curbed
Bellamoli Booms
The second of Grilled's two pre-season signings enjoyed an auspicious start to his Grilled career with a goal within fifteen minutes, although it has to be said that the opposition was not quite all that. Academy graduate
Rauf Khairul Akmal also scored on his full debut, following a single substitute appearance last season.
Clementi Wanderers were not expected to give the Birds too much trouble, having gone beyond themselves in shocking Kingmax Dolphines last Wednesday, and reserve coach Luis Alcántara had good reason to trust his younglings against the battle-scarred side of over-50s.
It was an exciting day for both Italian arrival
Pompeo Bellamoli, who managed to shed his perpetually dour expression for once, and Akmal, who marched out with the rest of the team for the first time. Bellamoli, who Stanca persisted in recruiting despite his relatively inflated pricetag, soon rewarded the faith of the club with a magnificent piledriver from wide.
Grilled's juvenile side had their nerves soothed with that breakthrough, and it was the turn of a local boy to leave his mark.
Rauf Khairul Akmal's dogged persistence in practice was brought to fruition soon after with a similar ranged effort, as Wanderers goalie Samsul bin Hamidi, who is admittedly an outfielder at heart, had his shot-stopping susceptibility exposed.
Clementi had their moment to relish in the 32nd minute, when portly left-winger Tao Dao-Zi shook free of the defenders in the Grilled box to reach a corner to the near post by Badrul Afzan bin Mohd Ariffin - he looked as surprised as anyone when his header beat
Hovaness Noubaryan, but the celebrations that followed were fully worthy of a much younger team.
Any thoughts of the unthinkable were dismissed when
Paolo Iten, newly displaced from the first team by Shaahee, sent out a wordless plea to be reinstated with a quite brilliant finish on the turn that followed much excellent work on the left.
Mayur Gudivada was likewise exemplary on the right, but
Hung Wee Li had an off-day leading the line.
Grilled were told to keep at it during the break, and this led to a killer fourth from
Teo Yong Yau, with Iten doing most of the heavy lifting. The Wanderers could in fact be praised for matching men a third their age for as long as they did, with Tai Sung-Woong's critical slip in the 77th minute very much the exception. It did however allow the merciless Gudivada to get through and make it 1-5.
Hilal Bakhtiar rang up another after putting a good chance off target, while Iten's experience as acting captain ended on a slightly sour note with an unbecoming dangerous tackle and rightful booking in the 83rd minute. Akmal was pleased enough to make way for an encouraging
Alex Fonseca in the final moments, as was
Colby Awyong for a comparatively less eager
Walter Ross.
