Safari Excursion
Mana Doubling
It was over to Rwanda for this midweek friendly, with IV.49 champions Leisure Safari - sitting pretty with eleven straight wins - being the Birds' hosts for the day, in their home lime green and orange. The second of three foreign subsidiaries by Dutch side Leisure project, Safari have been modest spenders under head coach Marcel Uwamahoro, with young Swiss forward Tinu Schönauer and Swedish midfielder Alejandro Valenzuela their only six-figure signings thus far. Neither would take to the field today, as Safari paired Italian teenager Celso Laconi with local boys Jerome Uwamahoro and Aline Uwineza in a matching 2-5-3.
Grilled would start slow and take their time ratcheting up, with Safari being full of hard running, but minimal penetration as yet. Uwamahoro would for one stub his right foot badly in the 18th minute chasing
Chad Thach down, but kept on trucking. They did have a brief, shining moment in the 31st, as goalkeeper Claude Mukankomeje arrowed a pinpoint sixty-yarder straight to Laconi. The youngster would have had a free run on
Dimitris Germanakos had he managed to get it under control - which he couldn't.
That did remind the Birds to get more serious, and they would wake up with four goals in eight minutes, including two in the 43rd.
Aw Keng Chuan sounded the opening gong with a lazy run that somehow escaped real attention by the defenders, after which
Lim An Keng and
Mohd Marzuki Khairul struck within seconds of each other. Gasore Habimana changed the mood entirely with his brave charge and deflected shot past Germanakos, and the two thousand-odd home fans didn't even mind much, when
Hwang Teck Fu volleyed home on Grilled's next advance.
That was half-time, and saw the entrance of Japanese goalkeeper
Dahan Bok, who truth be told has yet to justify his inclusion. Bok would at least have ample coverage, with Marcol and Germanakos ahead of him in the order, but club followers have yet to be convinced of his ability. His allowing Francois Nshimiyimana's glancing header past him after 52 minutes will not do much to rid his critics of such opinions, surely.
The Birds' outfielders would take over the conversation from there, to Dahan's relief, and it would be
Toma Tamiya to combine well with a rotating
Hwang Teck Fu, to crash home an electric flying kick on the hour. Hwang would join in the fun as
Gandhik Chitre crossed from wide right ten minutes later, with
Chia Kwang Tse getting booked for an obvious dive in between.
