Enterprise Stalled
Rinor Rinsing
Danish Division Six hosts U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D capitulated to a free-spirited barrage from Grilled's
Rinor Isufi and
Mohd Safri bin Mohd Kassim, who combined for five of the Birds' six goals. The home support at Universet did mostly take it in their stride, given that they were fielding an U-20 selection with the exception of 22 year-old rightback Lindy Bentzen, and were in any case more of a community club.
With it being a point of pride at Enterprise at only ever making a single transfer in, and a free one at that, the standard of football on display might have suffered somewhat as a result. Not that their rowdy tight-knit diehards cared all that much, as they racuously welcomed their local lads with all the buzz that a Cup final might have warranted.
For all that, it was all ardent amateurism against practised professionals once the referee got the game going, and for all of Enterprise captain Arne Esbensen's bustling about, it was always just a question of when Grilled would break through. The magic number, it turned out, was eleven minutes, and it would be Isufi who would elude Werner Boderskov's dogged determination to score.
It was questionable if this had registered in Enterprise's consciousness, as the youngsters were still embroiled in a debate with the linesman when the match restarted. If there was a player who would take full advantage of the situation, it had to be the 35 year-old
Mohd Safri bin Mohd Kassim, who had seen it all and then some. Adopting a pace that just about lulled the remaining alert Enterprise defenders into complacency, he suddenly turned it on and skimmed a fine bouncer past Herman Papsø.
Papsø could possibly have done better with Mohd Safri's hard but direct shot from deep three minutes later, but as it was, that was 3-0 for Grilled.
Remco van der Ban then got on the wrong end of his signature roughhousing in the 22nd minute, at the eager feet of Ivan Antonsen. He recovered quickly, though, and in the 31st minute cut correctly inside at the right moment to pave the way for
Rinor Isufi to score again, doubling-up on Boderskov.
Grilled made a couple of half-time changes, with
Zhao Jing Wei and
Domenik Bögengang replacing
Rashid bin Ahmad and
Pompeo Bellamoli in defence and attack respectively. This certainly didn't do much to push the pace, and
Hilal Bakhtiar's contribution in the 48th minute was entirely incidental, with the teenaged Torben Gandrup inexplicably letting
Low Aik Jia's through pass by him, on his debut. Gandrup appeared distraught, but will certainly get the time he needs to learn at Enterprise.
Isufi then got his hat-trick with a classy chip over Papsø, which was followed by the home team's best chance of the match by far. One could almost forgive Bakhtiar for being sloppy, given that Grilled were firmly in control and already on six, but unfortunately Nicklas Bendix couldn't make the most of the gift, after sprinting on Bakhtiar's woefully underhit backpass.
Dan Seng had gone to ground much too early, but Bendix nevertheless cut it too tight.
Former German starter
Domenik Bögengang found the post with his 62nd minute effort after
Tian Yonghang made the space, but then all but disappeared in the final half-hour as the hosts' youthful exuberance came through.
