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Lone Laakkad goal ends 2010’s last winless record
Firdaus Khan
info@sleague.com
Woodlands Wellington finally recorded their first victory in the S.League this season as they came away with a narrow 1-0 win over Balestier Khalsa at Toa Payoh Stadium.
A solitary goal by Rams forward Abdelhadi Laakkad was enough to separate the two sides in an otherwise cagey affair.
The result meant that the final winless record in the league this year was now gone, four days after Albirex Niigata (Singapore) had registered their first win at the expense of Sengkang Punggol.
With suspension to three key players in midfielders Ishak Zainol and K. Vikraman plus rightback Poh Yi Feng, Balestier retained seven players from the team which had put up a spirited performance in the 0-1 defeat to Etoile last Friday, while coach Nasaruddin Jalil called up four players from the club’s Prime League squad to bolster his bench options.
Woodlands, on the other hand, made only a couple of changes in the middle of the park as they welcome back Syed Karim and Luis Eduardo Hicks from injury and suspension respectively.
Keen to put up a great performance in front of the home crowd, the Tigers tried to control proceedings from the kickoff.
It did not take long for Balestier to get a shot on goal. On 15 minutes, Goh Swee Swee charged down the right flank, and his pass was well-received by striker Vitor Borges, who controlled brilliantly past the defenders but could only fire his shot over the bar.
As the game went on, the visitors slowly crept into the game and settled into the tune of things. Midway through the first half, they posed their first real threat to the Balestier defence.
Sazali Salleh returned to his natural role on the left wing after having been utilised as a central midfielder in Syed Karim’s absence in the last few games. The 30-year-old’s first contribution came with a good cross to pick out an unmarked Laakkad.
Unfortunately for Sazali, the Moroccan opted to be a little bit too stylish with his spectacular overhead kick. His effort proved wayward, and an opportunity was wasted.
The forward would however make amends on 34 minutes when he scored the only goal of the game, albeit in a slightly bizarre fashion.
S.League veteran Mohd Noor Ali showed flashes of his familiar brilliance, when he ran rings around the static Balestier defence before releasing a shot which was beaten away by goalkeeper Joey Sim. No one was to deny Laakkad the goal, though, as he powered his way to the rebound and fired home to put his side a goal up.
Spectators in attendance, who saw the ball hit the advertising boards, were initially surprised that a goal had been given, thinking the shot had gone wide. The match officials had soon discovered, however, that the ball had indeed hit the back of the net before rolling past a hole, a problem that took three minutes to rectify.
Laakkad gave a solid performance throughout the match, and he was in the thick of things again just moments before half-time. This time, he combined well for a neat one-two pass with strike partner Rizawan Abdullah, but the latter could not get to the end of the final pass, thus letting his former employers off the hook.
Woodlands could have put the game to bed on numerous occasions, but the heroics of Tigers goalkeeper Sim proved to be a stumbling block.
The 23-year-old’s best save of the night came on the hour mark. Rams captain Noor Ali failed to compose himself when caught in a one-on-one situation against the Balestier goalkeeper, and with Sim doing brilliantly, another chance went begging for the visitors.
It may have been a different game, but the same story repeated itself for Woodlands as they once again squandered a host of opportunities. Luckily for them, the result was different.
Balestier, though, could have made them pay with 15 minutes left on the clock when Woodlands centreback Winston Yap misjudged the flight of a quick goal kick and was caught out by Rivaldo Costa.
The Balestier forward regrettably could not find the finish as Rams goalkeeper Fajar Sarib denied his shot and secured victory for his team.
Woodlands coach A. Shasi Kumar was delighted with the team’s long-awaited first win of the league season, and was pleased with the overall team performance.
“It was a much-needed win for the team after recent results. We have been playing well and the win is much-awaited. Everyone worked hard and I am happy for the team.”
Shasi also shared his views on his team’s inability to convert chances, and stressed the importance of getting the goals in matches.
“It has always been the case for us this season. We will create chances but no goal comes from it and the opponent scores and they go on to win,” he said.
“We were 1-0 up today and we could have made things easier for ourselves. 1-0 is not a safe score line; even 2-0 is not. It is important to be converting those chances.”
Tigers coach Nasaruddin Jalil was visibly disappointed with the result, simply summarising the game in seven words: “If you don’t score, you don’t win.”
He also attributed his team’s mediocre performance to a thin squad he has to work with, which has forced him to shuffle his players around following several important absences.
“We had a few key players out today and we had to reshuffle the selections today. You can see Goh Swee Swee playing from right back to right midfield and back to defence,” he pointed out.
“Reshuffling is not good for any team. We have a thin squad this season and because of that, we are vulnerable, so we must keep on changing. I just hope the team becomes more disciplined.”
Balestier remain in seventh place despite the loss, while Woodlands move two spots clear from the bottom with this win, one point ahead of Albirex and the Young Lions. |
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