Up And Bak
Certified Cerruti
In a big twist, Grilled were informed that they were through to the knockout stages of the Asian Champions League, after Tokyo Raccoons' withdrawal. The Birds' prize was to play four-time Indonesian Ligina winners Bakpau in Jakarta, where the hosts graced the event with most of their best players. This would lead to a fruitful, if very painful, learning experience for Grilled's juniors.
Seeing Wille Joki-Erkkilä and Cosmin Berbec kit up was a sure sign that Bakpau meant business, and they sure held little back at the cavernous Mall d'bakpau®, with its official capacity of 111111. A popular venue for memorial and testimonial one-offs, its fame has led to it being booked even by foreign sides wishing to put up a showpiece game. Today's slightly less than five thousand spectators certainly had it good, as they clustered front and centre in the grandstand.
It was soon evident that the Birds were badly outclassed, but with
Rashid bin Ahmad directing the ever-retreating rearguard, they managed to survive for nearly twenty minutes. Their luck would run out when Bakpau's out-and-out Polish striker Mariusz Ceglarski elbowed his way past
Jérémy Tarin on a raked past to the back post, however, as Ceglarski would mow it in between countryman
Krystian Rykowski and the upright.
That tipped the balance conclusively, and Bakpau's second came just four minutes after Ceglarski's opener. Fabio Cerruti might have been placed at rightback, but Bakpau's dominance meant that he spent much more time in his usual role of attacking midfielder. He certainly looked the part when he darted through to finish, and a little later, he made it 3-0 after poaching Mihai Aşchilean's parried header from a corner kick.
The Romanian must not have been fated to score, as the same thing happened in the 31st minute - he met an excellent cross bent in by wonderkid Yusuf Priambodo, only for Rykowski to somehow scoop it aside, and Priambodo himself to chase the save down and score.
The half ended with a few worrying moments, with Ceglarski going down in agony after being tackled in the 36th minute, and Cosmin Berbec falling awkwardly after rounding Rykowski for the fifth goal shortly after; Indonesian youth international Haikal Andalas would replace Berbec as a precaution. Finally,
Jérémy Tarin suffered a dead leg, after having been given the run-around one too many times. Somehow, he didn't look too disappointed to go off for Spanish veteran
Remco van der Ban.
Grilled would come out with some semblance of organization restored, and given that Bakpau were miles ahead, it was quite understandable that they would slack a little. Bayu Budiman had his guard down after a long lull, and had the ball nicked by a quick-thinking
Iman Eshrafi. Fortunately for him, skipper Fabio Cacchiani had anticipated this, and his gaining a few steps on
Kalki Parvathaneni early, was probably the difference between him and a consolation goal.
With their best chance of the match denied, the Birds could only continue plugging away, but they found themselves being exerted far more severely than the more economical Bakpau pros. It was certainly not for want of effort that Finnish forward Wille Joki-Erkkilä jigged by to score in the 69th minute, as
Remco van der Ban would be booked for attempting a savage studs-up challenge to stop him.
Then again, the hosts were not exactly saints either, and there was a brief commotion in the 80th minute, after Mariusz Ceglarski refused to pull out of a straight-on hit on
Krystian Rykowski, despite being clearly second to the ball. Rykowski somehow emerged unhurt, but Ceglarski's act was not looked kindly upon by the protective
Rashid bin Ahmad, who made to drag him up by the scruff of his neck for a talking-to. Referee Cornel Clej was fast to intervene, and defused the situation with a prompt yellow card for the Bakpau striker.
It wasn't quite over, and the nimble Fabio Cerruti would complete his hat-trick on Bakpau's next attack, triumphantly assisted by an unrepentant Ceglarski. Matters would come to a head again in short order, and this time,
José Luiz Velho was not fortunate enough to escape unscathed, after his left foot bore Mihai Aşchilean's full weight. Clej once again resorted to his yellow card, as several Grilled players tried to argue for a harsher punishment.
Velho's departure meant a rare run-out for
Kohei Okuya, but there was not enough time for him to make an impact. Instead, Bakpau would close the game out with an auspicious - for them at least - eighth goal, with who else but Mariusz Ceglarski booming it in, right down the middle. Rashid's face was unreadable as the Pole whirled away in celebration, but then again, what else could he have expected?
