Grilled 2 - 3 Dragon
57463 spectators had found their way to
Ballota Stadium, despite the heavy rain.
Gianluca De Benetti was the appointed referee with assistance provided by
Hugo Becerril and
Wahid Abdeslam. While a boggy pitch like this was an advantage for physical players, it really didn't help those who relied on speed or technique. The match took place on neutral ground. Grilled's starters:
Germanakos -
Himadas,
其材 (Qicai) -
Reddy,
Thach,
Keng Chuan,
An Keng,
Trindade -
Teck Fu,
Kwang Tse,
Khairul.
Dragon fielded:
Figueiredo -
Yeng Ming,
Lakoussan,
Errázuriz -
Szépvölgyi,
Norshahrul Idlan,
Safir,
Moola,
Boon Huat -
Jun Chuan,
Woon Woon.
Grilled Birds fielded a 2-5-3 lineup. For Dragon Devil's, the formation of choice was 3-5-2. Grilled tried to focus their attacks down the middle, taking advantage of their divine (+7) (27) level with that tactic. Grilled's
Hwang Teck Fu tried to break through in the middle repeatedly, but couldn't get past the visitors' defenders. Grilled were very close to putting themselves one up after 8 minutes as
夏 (Ha) 其材 (Qicai) got through on the left. However, his concentration failed him, and he shot wide. After a fine move down the middle
Chia Kwang Tse nearly gave the home side a goal after 9 minutes. However the finishing shot went just wide. After 19 minutes, Dragon put themselves up 0 - 1, as
Ow Boon Huat finished off a strike from the left with a real cannonball of a shot. The teams went for the halftime break at 0 - 1. Grilled enjoyed most of the ball, as they maintained 58 percent of possession.
As the match clock hit 46 minutes, Dragon regrouped to try and keep their initiative in the game.
José Errázuriz high-fived
Ow Boon Huat as they swapped positions on the team. The crowd roared in delight as
Chia Kwang Tse finished off a spectacular series of passes through the middle to even the score for Grilled 53 minutes into the match. 1 - 1.
Paulino Trindade caused the crowd to go mental with his goal up the middle after 54 minutes. This gave Grilled the 2 - 1 lead. 55 minutes into the game, Dragon wanted to bring some new energy to their game.
Mansor Safir gave
Lau Boon Meng a quick hug as he left the field. After 74 minutes, a couple of quick and successful challenges followed by a shot from just outside the penalty area by
Aw Keng Chuan might have resulted in another goal for Grilled. However,
Ângelo Jorge Figueiredo made a spectacular save.
Paulino Trindade really should have scored when he was chosen by fate to confront a wide open goal following a great play by
Raúl Himadas after a corner. Dragon levelled the score after 76 minutes to make it 2 - 2, as
Li Jun Chuan struck home after a fine midfield combination through the centre, which left him completely unmarked. After 76 minutes, the Dragon coach wanted to see a new face on the pitch, waving
Chirag Moola off the field.
Eelo Mattila took his place. Dragon took the lead after 77 minutes making the score 2 - 3.
Megat Amir Faisal Norshahrul Idlan placed the ball out of reach for the home side's keeper after a fine move, coming in from the left. 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 2 - 3. Grilled had most of the ball, with 55 percent of possession.
The most dominating Grilled player was without a doubt
Chia Kwang Tse. However,
Raúl Himadas made a disastrous appearance. Dragon's top performer was clearly
Ng Woon Woon.
Ow Boon Huat turned in a dismal performance, however.