Sober Takedown
Chan's Maturity Apparent
There was never much in the way of doubt as to how this cup match would end, after Grilled Birds went ahead in the 25th minute, as third division strivers FG Alemannia 14 tried to choke them out without success. Then again, it was not as if Spanish head coach Dani Escayola didn't have a record of making do, as evidenced by their huge Singapore Consolation Cup final upset against Batok Earthquakes, just three seasons back. Half of the starting XI from then had been moved on, including hat-trick hero John Chu, but Escayola and company were clearly attempting to summon the same spirit from then.
They fared decently at first contact too, as Oh Wei Chang played it calmly out of danger following a good block by John Duong on
Vikram Mudaliar's opportunistic effort, and young skipper Yong Wei Beng turned it into a half-chance for Lee Rong Ting with an extra-long crossfield pass. This neat linkage would, alas, be a rarity for Alemannia, whose stance appeared to be caught between swift counterattacks and grinding it to penalties.
Alemannia had some excellent individual performances going on, and goalkeeper Duong would save his team once again in the ninth minute, as he courageously kept his face in the way of
Prokop Mottl's strike. Leftback Lee Rong Ting was probably their most involved outfielder, as he somehow managed to pose a credible threat down his flank, while adequately corralling
Bhavya Panigrahi. Then again, Panigrahi not being a natural winger might have helped.
Lee would nevertheless have to cop a booking for taking Mottl to the group in an understandable last-ditch tackle in the 12th minute, and Alemannia's parity would be extinguished in due time, as their defensive line buckled under Grilled's single-minded assault. Mottl had been particularly eager to find goals to accompany his indefatigable running, and he would deservedly get one in peeling off his marker as
Neeraj Muthyala played him through.
If Alemannia were hoping that they could stabilize and work towards an equalizer, they would be badly mistaken, as the Birds doubled their lead straight from their kick-off return. It would be
José Luiz Velho who, in starting a competitive match for the first time in three seasons, graced it by scoring too; this owed much to
Chan Ze Han, who knew where Velho would be as the ball arrived, and flicked it on without looking.
There would be a third goal in the 34th from
Bilal Mohammad Harun, who thundered down the middle as is his usual habit. Escayola looked more than a bit flustered at the deluge of bad news, and there seemed to be a minor mix-up just before half-time, as Alemannia's substitutions were communicated prematurely to the third official. As such, Jai Singhania would replace the luckless Lee Tze Choon in attack slightly earlier than expected, alongside Fang Guang Chang on to help Yong out on the right side.
While these tactical changes were hardly likely to turn it around for Alemannia, they didn't do any harm either, and the City club began to look almost comfortable for long stretches. There were hiccups, as
Chan Ze Han and
José Luiz Velho combined for a notable chance apiece entering the 74th minute, but John Duong was on his toes for both attempts.
Grilled had put
Chu Xin Lee on for Muthyala in the meantime, while Velho would join Lee Rong Ting in the referee's black book, for protesting a perceived foul being uncalled by punching the corner flag. These two were definitely being fun to watch, with Lee soon afterwarded swinging a free-kick that had
Massoud Dob concerned for a moment.
Referee Dennis Oschmann signalled for a single minute of additional time, what with the result all but decided, and it turned out that this was sufficient for three bona-fide attempts.
Chan Ze Han scored on the first of those, as he read Mo Yeow Lee's planned feint exactly, and stole it from the defender. Chan still needed to get his volley on the loose ball right, however, and he did just that.
Alemannia hadn't given up on a consolation goal yet, and if there was no be one, there would be no more fitting player to achieve it than Lee Rong Ting, who had covered more ground than anyone else. He generously rolled it on for the better-placed Jai Singhania, who then messed his approach up.
Gilbert Webb then came up with a strike from over thirty yards upon watching Oschmann lift the whistle to his lips, to casually ping the crossbar.
