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Second-half goals claim points for Young Lions
Elwyn Lee
info@sleague.com
Two second-half goals helped the Young Lions grab a morale-boosting win over Balestier Khalsa at Jalan Besar Stadium on Thursday evening in a match between two of the S.League’s more youthful outfits.
The Young Lions average just 19 years of age, while Balestier’s Tigers are four years older on average.
And with just five points the difference between the hosts and their visitors, more than pride and supremacy were at stake as these two sides battled it out to improve on their lowly standings in the 12-team league table.
After a vigorous first half which ended goalless, the Young Lions emerged victors of the enthusiastically-fought contest courtesy of well-placed strikes by Yang Mu and Khairul Nizam.
Despite the result, however, Young Lions coach Terry Pathmanathan was less than satisfied in his post-match review, sharing concerns on what he saw as indiscipline in the attacking line.
“It was a good result, but I am nevertheless not too happy with their performance,” said the former Singapore captain.
“They are not playing to their roles in attack, going everywhere except where they should be. They need to be brought down to earth, realise soccer is a team game, play as a team and not as individuals or stars.”
Over at the Balestier camp, coach Nasaruddin Jalil was his usual pragmatic self as he rued several missed chances.
“Bad result. We had chances, but did not make use of them.”
A prime example came just two minutes from the end, when the score was still 1-0 to the Young Lions. Centreback Jamie Pitt narrowly missed out on a deflected free kick which, had he converted, would have brought the two teams level.
“Pitt’s miss was down to not being composed when we are down,” noted the former Singapore midfielder.
“We are not defending well, and we are not scoring. We were lacking attacking options up front due to injuries and suspensions.”
The Tigers could take consolation, however, from the fact that the scoreline could have read 4-0 to the Young Lions, except that referee Muhd Syahir Ahamadi and linesman K. Surindranath had chalked off what appeared to be two clear goals, one in each half.
The rookie referee was barracked by the fans for those calls, but the players themselves accepted those decisions, persevered and eventually came good when it came to taking subsequent opportunities, getting their due rewards at the later stages as their opponents were again found wanting at the other end.
On 19 minutes, an Obadin Aikhena pass from the centre to Fadhil Noh just outside the box resulted in the latter’s dash onto goal. Looping the ball into goal just ahead of onrushing Tigers goalkeeper Abdul Rasyid Hamid, the two men then collided at the edge of the box.
It was a 50-50 chance and many in the stands considered the goal valid. Importantly, however, referee Syahir ruled otherwise as he blew for infringement against the Young Lions forward.
Fadhil again came close during the half-hour mark, when his headed effort off a cross into the six-yard box was sent just over the Tigers crossbar.
Heartened by the opportunities they had, the Young Lions were growing in confidence as they began their push forward, driving the visitors deep into their own half.
Fadhil was the young man of the moment throughout the first half, even if his many efforts failed to breach the Tigers goal.
If the 20-year-old was the key player for the hosts in the first-half, then the following half belonged to substitute striker Yang.
The strapping teenager came on after the break to replace fellow striker Fairoz Hasan, and his powerful strides and deft ball control were a cause for much concern for the visitors, especially down the middle where Yang reigned supreme.
Fadhil and Yang were orchestrating some good attacks as their lucid potency began to meld as soon as Yang hit the field. Just three minutes into the second period, the 19-year-old latched on to a free-kick inside the box and strung a pass to Fadhil that Rasyid scrambled to intercept, denying the Young Lions yet again.
Then came yet another effort by Fadhil just before the hour mark that looked to have cleared the goal-line by at least half a yard.
The striker had his initial effort saved by Rasyid as the ball came back his way. Side-footing his shot at goal, the ball was cleared after it looked to have clearly breached the line, but linesman Surindranath felt otherwise.
Referee Syahir concurred by waving away the vigorous protestations of the Young Lions players.
The decisions by the men in black were motivation enough for the Young Lions as they charged up defiantly, as if spurred on by the adversity that came their way.
A mere minute later it was Hariss Harun who pounded the ball from 20 metres out, only to be denied by the frame of Ram Shanker, his accurate shot of some ferocity deflected away from the target.
The match was threatening to boil over at various points, as indignant youth collided with authority and frustration steadily mounted among both sets of players.
But the Young Lions got their redemption on 64 minutes. Following a blocked free kick routine, Yang barged down the right, cleared his marker inside the Tigers box and slotted the ball into the net, overcoming the tight angle between the post and the goalkeeper. 1-0.
Stung into action, the Tigers responded positively when, during an immediate counter, the ball bobbled near their opponent’s post, bouncing narrowly past the woodwork as it drifted out of play.
Two minutes later Yang almost got his brace when a melee took place inside the Tigers box. The Chinese striker pounced on a loose ball inside the six-yard box but skewed his shot across the posts.
The Young Lions were ahead but by no means certain winners, at least no yet. The Tigers were still pressing and their penetrative forays into the Young Lions goal area were giving them renewed confidence.
A free-kick taken by Korean import Oh In Kyun two minutes from the end proved dangerous as the ball came off the wall, rose high and then ascended near the right post, Pitt just barely failing to get his foot to the leather as the opportunity for a morale-boosting equaliser passed by.
Five minutes later, deep into injury time, it was two-up to the Young Lions when substitute Nizam ended the tie with a goal of some aplomb, an audacious curler from 25 yards out that sailed over Hafez Mawasi, who had replaced the injured Rasyid, and into the back of the Balestier net.
Nizam celebrated to the roar of his many supporters, pulling his top off in ecstasy.
The mandatory yellow card he earned for that, however, left Pathmanathan deeply displeased as he pointed to it as evidence the boys needed to show much better discipline.
“I don’t understand why they celebrate goals like that,” said the 53-year-old, looking perplexed.
“We did not teach them to celebrate goals this way. (Assistant coach V.) Sundram did not celebrate like this when he was a player, and when I used to score one or two, nobody knew who scored because I quietly walked back to my own half to wait for the match to restart.
“Players can celebrate, but they they should be disciplined enough to be aware of the consequences of what they do. You take off your jersey to celebrate a goal, the yellow card you get might get you suspended for the next match, and what’s the good of that?
“Many of these boys are here in the league for just their first year, and the first year is not even finished yet. They still have a lot to learn, instead of behaving like stars.
“If they start getting too big for their shoes and think they have arrived, maybe it is time for some changes.” |
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