Up In Flames
Schmid Scare
It was hardly the best way to recover from the loss against Titus, but Grilled will take their win. Division Five club Isle of Flames had bested Temasek Gryphons in the last round, and put in an arguably even superior showing today. Unfortunately for them, while their midfield was certainly up to par against the likes of Bukhari, their attack and defence were a level behind.
Hidde van Liere seldom lets slip a chance to engage in showmanship, and he did exactly that with an extravagant bit of crossover dribbing on the touchlines. Fellow Dutchman Emiel de Kieviet was surprised long enough to let van Liere get his nose ahead, and he obligingly zoomed off and centered the ball for Martinsson to scramble in.
He was at it again after the restart, and this time Dominik Kieliszek took no chances. The Polish midfielder tugged van Liere back, getting an early caution and giving up a free kick right in front of goal. Martinsson fired that into the wall, but scooped up the rebound and routed it to Hjortlind via Borup. Hjortlind was unready, and was relieved to see his weak effort trickle past a wrongfooted Kok hei.
Isle of Flames actually enjoyed the majority of possession, but were rather aimless in their movement. They could make little headway against Grilled's experienced defence, but for a fabulous long ball hit out of their own defence by Yang Chee Meng that left Falkbo out of position.
Lanky Austrian forward Wilhelm Schmid allowed the ball to bounce once, then went up for it just as Sulaiman arrived. His header was guided over the keeper, but Sulaiman had not yet committed himself, and could elevate that extra inch to claw the ball out of the sky and hold it tight.
Rozmin bin Salman got himself booked for a dangerous chest-high kick that almost caught Hjortlind, and the match then fizzled out for the remainder of the half.
Isle of Flames got off to a terrific start in the second period, as Schmid first won a corner off Bona, and then lost his marker on the resulting corner. Alcántara had a hard time following him as he weaved through a maze of players, and he ended up in just the right place to convert Ainars Himens' near post cross.
There was an air of anticipation about the stadium as Isle of Flames started to threaten more through their wingers, but Grilled sensed the danger they could be in and started moving into top gear. In the end, it was Jie Siong who closed the game off, as he found Spirig free just five metres in front of goal and clipped a low pass to him for him to volley home.
