Regency Effect
Bak Off
It was difficult to tell which side was the more disappointed by the time the game at Bukit Regency Home concluded - was it the hosts, who had let a two-goal lead slip, in the final few minutes? Or was it Grilled Birds, who were unable to get a win despite playing with a man up for most of the contest? The shared point, then, would be a stark reminder of some very concerning failings, for all involved.
For Regency, it was minimally also their first of the season after consecutive defeats, though on hindsight those losses were far from damning; Arcturules had to work hard to edge them 3-2 here on opening day, while falling 0-2 to newbies are newbies away was hardly a dishonour. Given this, Regency's Romanian gaffer Cătălin Ciuşleanu carried on with his 3-5-2 press, trusting in the individual ability of German forwards Hubert Rötsch and Thilo Schmuecker to come through when it counted.
The Birds would put
Aw Keng Chuan in central midfield while giving
Damian Hutter a start in defence, shifting
Hwang Teck Fu out left to make space. This was on the surface an entirely rational tactical choice, but one that didn't seem to sit well with the team all told. A lack of attacking impetus would come to bit Grilled as Regency proved themselves more than capable of pressing into advanced positions, and the Birds would have
Dimitris Germanakos to thank for his leaping save against Rötsch's sharp 19th minute attempt, following Arne Alm shoving
Brian Reddy off the ball on the left.
Regency's forcing of the matter continued, and a rusty Hutter would be their next target, as he was harried into a questionable pass across to
Ha Qicai that Thilo Schmuecker pounced on, only to send it whistling by the goalpost. This had its downsides too as evidenced by Mark Bak getting a straight red after an uncalled-for studs-up tackle on
Mohd Marzuki Khairul, but it was something of a mixed blessing for Regency as Elmārs Beresņevs scored from Grilled's free-kick, after it was headed forcefully back down the pitch by an imposing Harri Sirkka.
It remained that the home team would have more than an hour to go against the Birds with a man down, and Ciuşleanu had them double down on the press, if now more limited in scope. This would only be partially effective as Grilled followed theory in spreading themselves to find space, and despite Regency's best efforts, this resulted in
Chia Kwang Tse being well-placed to meet Hwang's cross 38 minutes in. The ball came in at a perfect height for Chia as Ganesan Mirikar decided not to come out, and the placement of the header was immaculate. 1-1.
If the Birds were expecting that this presaged them pulling away decisively, they would however be badly mistaken. Bukit Regency came out for the second half spoiling for a fight, and Grilled's measured approach would too often be found wanting, against Regency's bluster. Hard running by Beresņevs got the winger a second goal by the 65th minute, as Grilled found themselves bashing their collective heads against a brick wall on the other end, with creativity nowhere to be found.
With defeat staring him in the face and just ten minutes remaining,
Tian Yonghang took
Hwang Teck Fu off for
Paulino Trindade, but this only introduced an uncertainty into the Grilled team, that their opponents ripped into. Austrian captain and fullback Jakob van de Edelweiß overlapped fiercely from the left to assist Hubert Rötsch as Grilled dithered immediately after the substitution, and it could have been all over the next minute with Elmārs Beresņevs curling it inside for Ove Vidme, who only had to keep it on target from five yards. Vidme put it wide, however, which did not assuage
Dimitris Germanakos's fury towards his defence in the least.
That apart, Bukit Regency seemed to have done what they needed to already, as they kept up with their pressing to appreciative chants from the near forty-thousand strong crowd. The tradeoffs of their approach would finally become evident in the final minutes, as their players were clearly on their last legs.
Brian Reddy, who had not found much luck against Alm and Van de Edelweiß in the preceding 86 minutes, would turn it around with a sudden pull inside, where he gracefully lofted
Chad Thach's short pass over a surprised Ganesan Mirikar.
That brought the game into overdrive with Regency determined to protect their impending victory, but this ironically only introduced yet more cracks into their increasingly-brittle coverage.
Chia Kwang Tse would be booked for arguing with the linesman over a throw-in awarded against him, but that incident would be swiftly forgotten as Grilled won it back, and Reddy sent the cross in with Grilled flooding the Regency box.
Ha Qicai emerged amongst the sea of heads as the ball dropped, and the glancing touch he got was sufficient to get it over the line, as Mirikar got his hand to it a second too late.
The home fans didn't know what to think as Ghana referee Seth Addo signalled for three minutes of stoppage time - should it be seen as an opportunity to seize the win, or would it be wiser to have the match end as soon as possible, with Grilled in full control at the moment? The allocated time passed soon enough even with
Bilal Mohammad Harun and
Mohsen El Khateeb tearing it up upon coming on, however, and a draw it was.
