Former Kim Dinged
Parva Power
While both Grilled Birds and the former Kim Tae Hee FC have won three national cups each, it has taken them 38 long seasons since their first meeting in a qualification match, to meet in the competition that has made their names. Grilled would leave no doubt as to who were better-placed to add to that haul, however, despite UDNTK FC leading II.2, and also having won it twice in the last three seasons.
Much-beloved 71 year-old loyalist head coach Tan Hock Ping had helped plenty in making the rebranding popular with the supporters, and he would prove entirely flexible on tactics too, as he prepared a 5-5-0 for this fixture that was entirely antithetical to his preferred attacking 3-5-2. Tan had evidently prepped the squad for this eventuality, though, with ex-Ukrainian national star Davyd Mezheiko very pointedly set up to collar
Chan Ze Han. Behind it all, they moreover had former Maltese youth international Martin Barbara in goal, and he had kept a clean sheet in the three cup rounds that he played, before Benfleet Branch last Wednesday.
The vast bulk of bettors would probably be disappointed, as this Round of Sixteen contest began in the most unexpected of ways - with UDNTK taking the lead after just two minutes. Appearances to the contrary, they remained entirely capable of bringing the ball upfield, especially when the opposition were lax, as the Birds definitely were. Nearly no-one thought it their responsibility to track back as rising midfielder Wei Qiang Jun forged ahead, and by the time the mistake was realized, Arwin Burghgraaff had already rolled it past a soon-to-be apoplectic
Massoud Dob.
That gift left Tan musing about his next step in the dugout, but UDNTK were happy enough to double down on strangling the match, for the time being; they would find it trickier than thought, with Mezheiko in particular finding Chan a very slippery customer. As against Sarcastic Fringeheads on Sunday, Grilled were not a team that could be safely left to their own devices for too long, and partly-forgotten man
Kalki Parvathaneni would remind all of his value, in the 17th minute. There was nothing too special about
Bilal Mohammad Harun's forward pass, but Kalki's early first touch made all the difference, and Daniel Tăsică was left with no opening for a tackle as the forward equalized.
Kalki would next put Grilled ahead about four minutes later, as their opponents found themselves forced into a reactionary posture, and not a comfortable one at that. Banking on counterattacking would be one thing if they could insure stability and an outlet, but there was precious little of either available, as the Birds pressed in from all directions.
Cyril Künzler swung more than a few decent crosses in, given the space he was afforded on the right, and Kalki met one of those with a big header for 2-1.
It was far from over yet, undoubtedly, and just in case any Birds fan had any doubt, UDNTK FC would start the second half off, by threatening Dob's goal with purpose. Dutch dribbler Arwin Burghgraaff got a series of corners going, and on the third one, Wilfred Baranczyk would manage to nudge it to an unattended Ryszard Zbroński at the back post. Had Baranczyk known the amount of time available, he probably would have set himself for an easy finish. As it was, this allowed a prospective counter by Künzler, only for him to be chased down by Zakaria Chitinashvili.
UDNTK continued to hassle, with Mezheiko tireless in his pursuit of Chan, but the overall tone would gradually come to favour Grilled; after all, they were the ones bringing their best formation, and not their opponents. Against Grilled's unceasingly fluid offence, holes would inevitably open up, and
Moey Xin Seng spotted Kalki through one of those. This brought the Number Ten's seventh goal of this cup campaign, and the eighth hat-trick of his glittering career.
At this,
Chan Ze Han would be substituted off for
Chu Xin Lee, to further throw UDNTK into disarray. Now torn between gambling it all and waiting for a bite, they would manage neither, with fullback Kevin Gardelegen drawn into pulling
Heng Dong Chu back by his jersey, for which he couldn't escape a booking. There would be more of the same in the penalty area several minutes later, and referee Ivaylo Vúlchev settled on awarding the spot kick, rather than haul up any of the offenders.
Cyril Künzler wasn't complaining, as he coolly smashed it hard and in at the right corner, despite Martin Barbara guessing the right way.
Ryszard Zbroński would force
Massoud Dob to be alert with a vicious right-footer in the 81st, but all in all, it was UDNTK who would be on the receiving end of a flurry of close calls, as Künzler and Egan called Barbara into action more than once. Gardelegen might have scored another consolation in injury time, but his ambitious lob after beating
Gilbert Webb, would deflect off the crossbar.
