Paranoid Response
Overtime Onset
Grilled narrowly lost out to mid-table Liga del Quetzal club C.F. paranoia after a good show of character coming back from two early goals. Guatemala, a Central American nation, was the destination this time, the climate and rainstorms vaugely reminding the players of Singapore.
C.F. paranoia were coming off a goalless draw with fckn team, and their second team were itching for action after a break in their friendly schedule. A sprightly three man attack posed instant problems to Grilled's defence, but it was 32 year-old wingback Lucio Dávila who shocked Bao-Tam with a clever chip in just the third minute.
Their true threats came from unexpected sources, as they advanced in packs. Defensive midfielder Antón Gorriti displayed some silky Spanish flair as he hopped over a despairing Jie Siong tackle and slashed a path through the rest of Grilled's backline. His left-footed finish was sharp and brutal in contrast.
Hidde van Liere was a lone bright spot, and he found passes inevitably going to him. Frequently frustrated by the lack of support, the Dutch winger might have made it count after aludný overcommitted on an attempted interception. Clear onto goal, his final kick lacked any semblance of strength and was easily stopped.
Grilled's forwards were clearly not up to it as they floundered on the soggy field. van Liere was left to soldier on, and he contributed directly to Grilled's first goal when he was muscled out rather crudely by a bunch of defenders in the box. Fullback
Marcus Liehner took over the responsibility of the penalty, and neatly dispatched it past local lad Isael Rojas.
Gorriti would have hit a second from the restart, but for Bao-Tam's speed off the line. Grilled then played their best five minutes of the game, involving just about every man and finally setting up an overlapping run by
Luis Alcántara on the right wing. Alcántara crossed well, and Romanian midfielder
Dragos Olaru climbed over Hobson to head in his first ever goal for Grilled.
Liehner could have finished the hosts off five minutes later, when he dropped a twenty metre free kick over the defensive wall, but Rojas was up to it and instinctively palmed the ball out, leaving Dávila to smash it behind for a corner.
With a drawn game at full time, eleven minutes of extra time were played before Danish striker Jacob Teilmann slipped a high pass through to Modesto Zumbado, who scored on the half-volley in the first chance of that period. A satisfactory result for the home side, and indeed for the visitors too.
