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Champions League exit lets Warriors refocus
Firdaus Khan
info@sleague.com
Recently knocked out of the AFC Champions League and six points off the pace in the S.League, SAFFC will be looking to get their league campaign back on track as they make the trip down to Jalan Besar Stadium to face the Young Lions on Thursday.
The 2010 season has not been easy on the champions, as they have found it impossible to string any form of results this season.
The indifferent start sees the Warriors sit on fifth spot with eleven points, but with no more distractions in the Champions League, many will expect SAFFC to finally mount a stronger challenge in the S.League.
Last week’s 0-3 defeat at the hands of Gamba Osaka in Japan condemned the Warriors to elimination from the Champions League, and with the fixture against the Young Lions being their game in hand on league leaders Tampines Rovers, Richard Bok is determined to close the gap.
“The league is important to us, so we will have to get as close as possible to the leaders in the standings,” he told sleague.com.
“The Young Lions are a young side with a lot of energy and we know what is needed from us. We have to go there and do a professional job and, most importantly, stay close to the leaders.”
However, the SAFFC coach said his side’s participation in the Champions League is far from over, and his priorities still lie in seeing out the remainder of the competition in style.
“We still have two games in the Champions League. We may be out but we want to improve on last year. If possible, we will try to get a point or two and improve in terms of goals and points.”
Bok also revealed that the true colours of the Warriors will only be unleashed at the end of the month, when they finally wrap up their Asian campaign.
“High-level Asian matches have taken a lot of energy from the players. We have also played many games this year,” added the 40-year-old.
“By the end of April, there will be no more ACL. We can then finally concentrate on the league.”
Young Lions coach V. Sundramoorthy has the unenviable task of preparing his boys against SAFFC, and the words of Bok could possibly offer some comfort to his ears.
With only one win this season and placing just one spot from the foot of the table, the home side will need all the help they can get to get a result and climb up the standings once again.
Unfortunately, at the back of the home team’s mind will be next week’s fixture against Albirex Niigata (Singapore), which is shaping up to become a potential bottom-of-the-table clash.
Woodlands Wellington’s 1-0 victory over Balestier Khalsa on Monday caused the Young Lions to relinquish tenth spot to the Rams. To make things worse, Albirex also notched their first win of the season last week to bring them level on points with the Young Lions on five.
On the bright side, though, the Young Lions do possess a game in hand on both teams, but with champions SAFFC in the way, many will be writing the young team off.
Team manager Eugene Loo though had a different opinion, pointing out that his team had been through similar stern tests and should be able to prove their worth alongside Singapore’s best.
“It is good for our young players to play against a big team like SAFFC,” he said.
“The game will no doubt be tough but we are prepared and have played against strong opponents before.
“They are the champions of the S.League and they had a lot of commitment in the Champions League, which means they will definitely be title contenders for this season. We just have to be motivated to play against them.” |
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