A Shambles
Unwanted Record Equalled
Grilled's last and best hope for some redemption would pass them by in a sordid day at The Cooking Pot, as the also-doomed AkA FC brought them down with a delayed burst of energy. This loss, the seventh in a row, sees the Birds equal their previous record for this statistic - and, given their forthcoming schedule, they are a good bet to break it.
The Jurong weather would prove only too reflective of Grilled's current state - dreary and rainy, which was one thing, but also uncomfortably hot and muggy at the same time. It was as if the skies were unwilling to countenance this duel of no-hopers, and the turnout reflected that.
Then again, AkA FC had yet to win in their eleven previous matches in this league, which coupled with home advantage, left Grilled as provisional favourites. A determined - if only too weary -
Tian Yonghang led the side out for the 184th time, with Grilled sticking stubbornly to their fallback pack-the-middle plan.
And grim it was. It soon became painfully apparent that nobody was
enjoying themselves out there, drizzle and heat notwithstanding; the players were - understandably - all more afraid of committing mistakes than coming up with something grand, and the remaining audience was - also understandably - mostly disinterested.
Rinor Isufi was the most involved, but even he struggled to catch the eye, under these circumstances.
There would actually be some production going on, as
Tian Yonghang made it a point to occupy Ruediger Zimmer, at one instant almost throwing Zimmer off with a sly elbow tap. The German veteran remained too experienced to be beaten by little tricks alone, however, and with the wet ground not being cooperative, that was about the limit of Tian's contribution.
Still, Grilled could at least take some pride in maintaining most of the possession... until it bit them in the 32nd minute. A promising maneuver broke down on the right, and with
Ang Leong Kum having abandoned his post, Romanian winger Traian-Radu Zgărdan had a wealth of options at his disposal.
Hoàng Trung Quá smothered Dinho Cartola in a slightly questionable way, but the pass ran through to 21 year-old midfielder Tan Boon Rong, who slung it past
Valentin Batâr.
It was slightly disconcerting that the home fans were hardly stirred by the reversal, but then again, they had long since seen enough from this team. There was some celebration three minutes later, though, when Isufi finally got the better of Zimmer, with a lightning-fast attack down the centre. Albert Cheng had apparently underestimated how quickly the Albanian could get going, and provided false assurance against the impending threat.
The restoration of the status quo was at once disappointing yet reassuring to the participants, and they returned to maintaining an uneasy truce, pending half-time. It was difficult to confer any merit at all on the Grilled players, given how reluctant they were to take the least of risks, but
Yuta Nakakita did at least exude a sense of security, with his constant covering runs.
The visitors would try to shake it up with the arrival of Mexican fullback Bruno Santacruz in the 64th, and he promptly took over as skipper from the departing Sigismondo Govoni. There was indeed increased activity up their left flank, but not enough to concern the Birds overly, and they would keep on trying to bring Isufi into the game with limited success.
With twenty minutes remaining, it was time for
Djan Bacelar to show his hand - the big swop would be
Moey Xin Seng in for a solid if unspectacular
Chu Xin Lee at forward, in the obvious hope that Moey's X-factor could assert itself; alongside him,
Yuki Irie came in for Hoàng... which, unfortunately, would turn out to have the far bigger impact.
Moey Xin Seng was actually a definite upgrade over Chu, but with AkA FC concentrating on protecting their goal, it was no easy feat for him to get a breakthrough. He did almost manage it in the 84th minute... but his final ball was picked off by the defence, and a delightful long ball out of defence by Marino Malusardi was knocked clear by Alexander Ibarrarte across the field, leaving Bruno Santacruz to scramble it home.
This was a punch to the gut for the Birds, but their retained enough fight about them, to go for it right from the restart. Extremely unfortunately, Isufi's shout for a penalty was denied after the referee judged that he had been looking too blatantly for it, and as several Grilled players tried to make their case, the visitors made it 3-1 through Aviv Gershon.
The fatalistic humour just had to spread through the gallery, after this morbid turn of events, and Grilled were denied even the consolation of a reply, after Isufi's desperate lob skimmed over the crossbar.
Neeraj Muthyala somehow cared enough to try and argue for a corner, and it was somehow fitting that his only reward was a yellow card.
