Park Pantsed
Tian Treat
One good eight-one evidently deserved another, as Grilled kicked off their participation in the Football's Coming Home tournament with a repeat of that score against Dutch Division Seven club South_Park_FC. South_Park had been tearing it up in their league, having scored sixty-nine without reply in eight matches, but the Birds proved a completely different kettle.
Their winning record did make South_Park completely unbothered by the Birds' identity, though, and they would find Grilled less than impregnable on defence. Immediate pressure from kick-off found its mark, as Emilio Canitrot got
Ling Fuquan to put it behind for a corner. Brazilian skipper Adriano Figolieto bent it in towards the near post, where Finn Hoellebrand-Palkovic stooped to catch
Wong Tian Han out with a snap header.
It couldn't last, though, and despite the rain interfering with the passing game that Grilled were accustomed to,
Rinor Isufi managed to equalise by the 14th minute. It was then 3-1 by the 36th minute, with
Wong Ping Shun striking twice, the first from open play, and then from a penalty that Isufi had won in slightly dubious fashion.
That spot kick marked open season for Grilled, who would add three in the next four minutes, right in time for the break. Another Isufi solo plow was followed by
Tian Yonghang's latching onto
Low Aik Jia's extremely early cross. Tian would then evade Harald Hystad's attentions for just long enough to put another one beyond Swedish custodian Ragnar Weddahl.
Ling Fuquan would return to the side for the second half, replacing
Zhao Jing Wei, who proved as adept at the back as he had been as a withdrawn forward. Ling's bid for an assist would however not come off, as his perceptive cutback to
Clément Meyer on the edge of South_Park's area would be sidefooted way wide by the Frenchman.
Tian would complete his hat-trick after 74 minutes by calmly waiting for Weddahl to commit to a rush, and
Gene Filippone would complete the scoring with a well-timed surge forward.
Low Aik Jia then copped the only caution of the game, for an ill-considered nip at Horst Markelingerode's ankles.
