International 1 - 2 Grilled
55635 spectators arrived at
The Pragmatic Elegant Next-gen Intricate Stadium, where weather conditions were pretty good for football.
Andrew Simonsen was the appointed referee with assistance provided by
Ricardo San Pedro and
Luis Esteban López. The match took place on neutral ground. International fielded:
Fendt -
Humphries,
Arshad,
念祖 (Nianzu) -
Heng Min,
Kong Chuan,
Kang Tong,
Syafiq,
Kwang Kong -
Thế Doanh,
Siong Leng.
Grilled's lineup was:
Germanakos -
Mangoye,
Webb -
Baena,
Teck Fu,
Kwang Tse,
Khairul,
Trindade -
Chitre,
Ze Han,
Balde.
It was to be a contest between two different football philosophies, since the home team started the game with a 3-5-2 formation while the visitors instead opted for 2-5-3. Using their counter-attacking abilities was the strategy of choice for International on this day, taking advantage of their outstanding (10) level with that tactic. Grilled seemed to prefer attacking in the middle, taking advantage of their world class (13) level with that tactic. After 6 minutes,
Ow Kong Chuan took a hard knock between his legs. He needed a long breather but were eventually able to continue the game. The head of
Enrique Baena connected with a corner kick after 13 minutes, and the ball ended up with
Gandhik Chitre of Grilled who blasted the ball into the net, making the score 0 - 1. After 26 minutes, an incisive pass through the middle gave
Mohd Marzuki Khairul a chance to increase the lead for Grilled, and he did not disappoint. The score was then 0 - 2. Against a lesser team, Grilled could very well have succeeded with their smart indirect free kick routine after 35 minutes. A trio of passes took the ball all the way past the defenders, but by then the intended recipient was already blocked off and the keeper could make a leisurely save. It was 0 - 2 at the break. Grilled had most of the ball, with 60 percent of possession.
46 minutes into the game, Grilled wanted to bring some new energy to their game.
Hwang Teck Fu gave
Lim An Keng a quick hug as he left the field.
Chia Siong Leng stunned the crowd with a brilliant counterattack from the left, giving International the goal to make it 1 - 2. The home crowd cheered when, after 74 minutes,
Ibnou Balde's charge up the middle resulted in the keeper making one of his best saves of the day.
Suhaizi Arshad would have preferred to play on, but his coach decided otherwise.
Mohd Hairul Nizam Uthman entered the game for International as the match clock showed 75 minutes. As the 85 minute mark approached, the Grilled coach decided it was time for a substitution.
Chan Ze Han reluctantly made way for
Joe Reece on the pitch. With
Chan Ze Han no longer on the pitch,
Gilbert Webb became the new set pieces taker.
Gilbert Webb became the new Grilled captain. After 85 minutes, the Grilled coach wanted to see a new face on the pitch, waving
Atang Mangoye off the field.
Mohsen El Khateeb took his place. The players were tired, but when the referee announced that there would be 1 minute of added time they, nonetheless, welcomed the extra opportunity to make an impact. The match ends 1 - 2. Grilled enjoyed most of the ball, as they maintained 59 percent of possession.
Chia Siong Leng performed admirably for International.
Mohd Hairul Nizam Uthman was a disappointment, however. Grilled's top performer was clearly
Lim An Keng. On the other hand,
Gilbert Webb's play was disheartening.
