Semis Truck Halt
Chad Weighs In
Grilled Birds entered the finals of the Ruby Challenger Cup after a 5-3 victory against S-League opponents HEBFC Tonners FC, who had won four out of their five fixtures against the Birds before this. The latest of those, in the main cup proper six years ago, had seen Czech winger Michal Balkovič light it up with a brace, and he would return if on the left side today. A few others would be present for the rematch, foremost amongst them national forward Yong Siong Eng, who partnered Myron Lam in attack. Behind them were midfield centrepiece Balasubramanian Teja and veteran Spanish sweeper Diego Giménez, both of whom had played vital roles that bygone day at Love Street Stadium.
The Birds had undergone something of a makeover since then too, with much of the pregame chatter being over the condition of new Latvian signing
Leongīns Luško, as the 36 year-old made his full debut in defence with his right thigh wrapped in compression bandages. There wasn't much for
Dan Alstani to configure with
Genki Nagano and
Lim An Keng both still recovering, and
Wu Ping De was restored to left wing as
Hisham Zubari took central midfield against Teja. Finally, with
Hwang Teck Fu suspended,
Mohd Marzuki Khairul checked in as Grilled's main striker, a position he has not filled for some time.
There would not be too much time for Tonners boss Fu Rong Tse to muse over the implications, as young Argentine referee Pablo Humeres got the game underway without undue ceremony. The weather was near-perfect for football, and
Wu Ping De had much of that to execute, from his eagerness to challenge Egidius Gaber. He found early success in his running without the ball, though, as Myanmar playmaker
Hein Thiha Pyae Ko sought him out instead of the heavily-marked
Chad Thach, in the fifth minute. HEBFC captain Patricio de Luaces tried to shadow Wu, but was left a step behind as he breezed inside before lifting a diagonal lob over Danish goalie Thorkild Dueholm.
Grilled had the flow going their way now, and they were coming out slightly ahead in the frequent midfield battles, if with the Tonners' Mike Burch having some of the best moments with his silky-smooth footwork.
Ananda Hettiarachchi only came alive in the 27th minute, as he pulled ahead of António Lino Dias Moreira to assist
Mohd Marzuki Khairul with a delightful outside-boot pass. The aggrieved São Tomé e Príncipe midfielder returned the favour right the next minute, though, with Balasubramanian Teja splitting the sluggish Birds defence to redirect Moreira's pacy cross past
Radomil Marcol.
The match was boiling over in terms of excitement about now, and Grilled's frenetic advance from kick-off would only be conclusively headed off by Diego Giménez's intervention on the overly-direct
Chia Kwang Tse. Seconds later, Burch had ferried the ball all the way to the edge of the Birds box, and Egidius Gaber took it from there with a stiffly-hit grounder to the far corner after nosing his way inside.
Mohd Marzuki Khairul was next up to try and get the Birds their lead back, but his instinctive chip was watched all the way by Dueholm, as it landed half a yard wide.
The second half thus began with the semifinals still being anybody's game, if with Grilled Birds quickly sliding back into the driver's seat - much of this being attributable to
Hisham Zubari's tireless water-carrying sitting in front of the backline.
Leongīns Luško proved a calming influence in Grilled's defence too, often making Yong Siong Eng look almost ordinary with his presence. That said, Luško had a lucky moment too when he took his eyes off Yong for an instant, but the forward couldn't get Burch's ambitious pass under control.
Things then started to get good for the Birds, and a strong dribble by
Phillip Nagata forced Alex Gujkás to come with him all the way to the corner flag, where the Romanian fullback couldn't block the eventual cross.
Chia Kwang Tse appeared all set up for a thumping volley, but was thrown off his stride by António Lino Dias Moreira's sudden appearance beside him.
Ananda Hettiarachchi retrieved the now-loose ball on its second bounce, knocking it through to
Chad Thach, who first-timed it from seven yards for 3-2.
HEBFC Tonners FC finally appeared to be struggling after this, and there were few signs of the ready defiance that they had put up in the previous half. Burch would remain their main source of ideas, but with
Hein Thiha Pyae Ko increasingly getting used to his style, he would not be able to create as much as he had wanted. Myron Lam was left dropping deep to try and receive more of the ball, which however left Yong Siong Eng frequently double-teamed by himself.
A one-goal lead was hardly sufficient assurance for Grilled Birds for all that, and the Tonners' 3-5-2 remained sturdy enough against uncommitted attacks. Michal Balkovič was seeking to do his part for them here, but it was
Phillip Nagata who would again get the better of this matchup eventually. A speedy rush down the right touchline opened the way up for an early cross, which
Chia Kwang Tse met with his forehead this time - straight into a huge deflection off Diego Giménez. Thorkild Dueholm had no chance there, and the only question was whether Chia had fouled Giménez in the process, which a lengthy video review cleared him of.
What it did result in was a retrospective yellow card for Balkovič, whose late hack on Nagata had originally been missed by the match officials. The Slovakian was not amused, but was soon back about his business. Tonners head coach Fu Rong Tse urged his team forward to little avail, and Grilled Birds appeared to have weathered their pressure, as
Dan Alstani made a double sub of
Paulino Trindade and
Mason Glendinning for Wu and Marzuki in the final minute. Perhaps too soon, as it turned out, after Yong Siong Eng stole
Hein Thiha Pyae Ko's lazy throw-in back towards
Leongīns Luško, to set up a very interesting period of injury time.
The fourth official drew some boos from the Tonners support when only a single minute was added on, which did not go their way in any case. It was entirely understandable as to why they had committed all their forces in search of the necessary equalizer, but that also left them entirely vulnerable when
Hisham Zubari predicted and cut out Balasubramanian Teja's forward ball in mid-air. Thorkild Dueholm was caught out near the centre circle, and
Chad Thach duly raced Mike Burch for the outlet pass into empty space, before sticking the conclusive fifth goal into the empty net.
