Cup Hiccups
Grilled coach
Hovaness Noubaryan tried to steer the conversation from
Prokop Mottl's first-half indiscretions as much as he could, as he reviewed the Cup game. "FC Royal Flush were hanging with us for the first half-hour, every step of the way." he offered. "There were a couple of fouls, but I think they looked worse in slow motion replay, than they really were."
The Birds' next cup opponents were revealed to be FG Alemannia 14, who had eliminated the Winti Tigers 4-2 on penalties after extra time ended goalless. Promising young forward Jai Singhania should recover in time, and Noubaryan thought it high time Grilled met the rising City club, twenty seasons after their founding. "They've just won the Singapore Consolation Cup a couple of seasons back." he recounted. "That's something."
The Farmer Bunnies were made to sweat by Division Four leaders Marina Tigers FAS, and this after a 2-3 upset to Benfleet Branch in the group stages of the Pacific Cup tournament. The Tigers were patient as they formed up in a 5-3-2 too, and it took
Wong Ting Yew's emphatic finish fourteen minutes from time, off
Ibrahim Zahran Al-Maashany's layoff, to prevent it going into extra time.
Buns gaffer
Dalibor Kostadinović was pleased for Wong. "He's hit a rough patch last season, but we all know what he can contribute. Upright Stick of Justice are tricky customers at the best of times, and I'd like to think that the players will keep their wits about them."
For Grilled International, last season's deep cup run never seemed further away, as they struggled against Irish H.I. V.201 side Invisible daemons, who struck twice in injury time to secure a 5-5 draw after regular time. International never recovered from the Daemons' miracle, and tamely succumbed to two additional goals.
The only silver lining was perhaps
Chua Jun Long being named as an official Bruneian U-20 prospect, although the 17 year-old confessed that he would have much preferred his 16th minute lob to have went in. Tangentially, rumours from The Cooking Pot have it that currently-injured 32 year-old attacker
Islom Davlatov is being scouted by the Uzbekistan national team, but further details are sparse at the moment.
