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Frenchmen come good at last with Warriors win
Bhaskaran Kunju
info@sleague.com
In all their clashes with the league’s big boys thus far, Etoile have only come away with draws against Home United and Tampines Rovers, and a defeat to inconsistent outsiders Gombak United.
But against SAFFC on Friday night, the Stars served up a performance to be remembered as they tore into the Warriors with a comprehensive 3-0 win.
The run-up to the game had been marred with off-field incidents that had grabbed the headlines in the local media. Staff departures, backer pullouts, even talk of financial trouble had prompted dark clouds to gather around the new franchise.
So with the reigning champions lined up at Jalan Besar Stadium in front of a crowd of 2,526 that included President SR Nathan, a huge football fan himself, it was no surprise then that the Frenchmen came in to the game with an additional sense of purpose.
A furious start with some flurry of clashes at SAFFC’s end had the crowd roaring, both sets of fans mutually acknowledging to paint the backdrop for the close affair that was ahead of them.
But 14 minutes was all it took for the deadlock to be broken. Cyril Bagnost’s opportunistic effort from some 30 yards out bobbled off the ground and past the stretched Shahril Jantan.
With the game set alight and the fans roaring for more, SAFFC pushed ahead to get back on level terms as soon as possible, but they struggled to get a foot in the game as Etoile stifled them in every inch of space on the field.
In fact, tactically suppressing their opponents and preventing them from playing their game was the masterplan for Etoile. The only thing SAFFC could do was to wait for breaks, something that did not look likely to happen with the Frenchmen pushing into top gear.
The first half was largely uneventful save for a few bookings for both teams, with Ahmad Latiff Khamarudin’s yellow on 34 minutes being more notable.
A penalty appeal by Taisuke Akiyoshi was waved away by referee Abas Daud after the Japanese was knocked over in the box. A sense of injustice and frustration from the resulting play led to a rash challenge by Latiff that could easily have been construed for a heftier offence.
Kevin Yann had the only other real chance for the half, when his snap shot from outside the centre of the penalty box on 22 minutes flashed past Shahril’s left upright.
Despite missing a key player in the injured Karim Boudjema, Etoile never looked a foot off and in an incident-packed second half, stamped their superiority over the champions on the night.
Five minutes from the restart, Matthias Verschave came close to doubling his side’s lead as a low hard cross from leftback Andrea Damiani was gathered by Shahril before the striker could pounce.
Then Daniel Bennett’s scuffed clearance deep in his own half was set on by Frederic Mendy on the right flank. The gangly Frenchman raced into the box, but before he could line himself up for a shot, Bennett recovered in time to put the ball out for a corner.
The resulting corner yielded a near-post header by Verschave, which was hoofed off the line by the well-positioned Hafiz Osman at the far post.
With the game getting elevated, the man in the middle had a handful to deal with. On more than one occasion both sets of players had to be kept from descending into full anarchy as they repeatedly confronted the referee.
But things went bad on 56 minutes as Hafiz saw red for a petty challenge. The rightback kicked out at Mendy in full view of the well-placed referee, resulting in a straight red that could hardly be disputed.
Finding a way back into the game was already a tough prospect for the Warriors. To do so with a man down made the mission all the more improbable.
Richard Bok made no changes to his team despite the red card, and instead pushed his men forward and stretched his defence, a bold plan that would backfire spectacularly.
Just two minutes after the sending-off, Mendy broke free down the middle but failed to pick out the runner either side of him.
By the hour mark, Etoile had the game down to crawling pace and fully within their control. It was either a case of no real sense of urgency or just sheer confidence, but either way Etoile kept the chances coming.
First, Flavien Michelini hit a free kick just over the crossbar from the left edge of the penalty box. Then Kevin Yann forced Shahril to touch the ball into the side netting after a neat one-two, and on 69 minutes Michelini again fired wide when the ball found him unmarked in the penalty box with all the time in the world.
But a minute later, their efforts paid off. Bagnost’s deep cross from the left flank to the far side reached Yann, who volleyed his shot past Shahril and into the back of the net.
The SAFFC players did not even make an effort to track back or win possession despite the buildup being slow-paced. Nevertheless the goal had the entire Etoile bench on its feet together with the crowd, who found their voice again.
Two minutes later, though, SAFFC were gifted a golden opportunity to pull a goal back.
A corner floated to the far post was headed back into the thick of the action by Niklas Sandberg. Yohann Lacroix, who had rushed out to claim the ball, dropped it at Indra Sahdan Daud’s feet.
The former national striker did well to get a shot in on goal, but Lacroix proved he was no passenger in the game with a great reflex save to maintain his side’s clean sheet.
That effort proved to be the only clear chance SAFFC would have for the night.
At the other end Mendy, who fired a sitter over the bar shortly after Lacroix’s save, made amends with ten minutes left.
Latiff was caught flatfooted as the last man when his attempt at an offside trap was easily breached by the hardworking Mendy, who raced away with no one tailing him. Shahril, who had left his line to clear the ball, could not get a clean kick out of panic, allowing the striker a free shot at an empty goal he was not about to miss again.
As the clock ran down, Etoile calmly passed the ball around before a scene of ecstasy from their fans and players erupted at the final whistle.
After the match, Bok did not hold back on his criticism of the team’s performance, but said he was looking forward to something more positive next time.
“I would like to apologise to our fans for such a poor performance,” he said.
“It was a bad game, we were very poor but we have to try to go forward. We have two more games against them so hopefully we’ll perform better in those games.”
The 40-year-old conceded that his opponents came into the game with more hunger and showed exactly why they had stated their desire to be champions.
“Credit to Etoile for playing a good game. We should learn from them, their movement and passing was good. They raised their game a few levels against us and we didn’t have the same level of bite.”
Etoile coach Patrick Vallee, clearly hoarse from his relentless shouting from the touchline, surprisingly dedicated the win to the students of Dunman High School.
Vallee explained that they had promised the students a win when the team visited the school on International Friendship Day a week before.
“We play to win every match and we try to play good football at the same time for the fans. Tonight we were well organised and if we can play like that I am not surprised that we could win 3-0.” said Vallee.
“I know it’s a big match but the championship has a long way to go. But it is satisfying to win 3-0 against SAFFC.
“We didn’t change our tactic much and it was the same gameplan as against Beijing. Next match I’m sure will be very difficult.”
Club chairman Johan Gouttefangeas was in triumphant mood as well, making a clear statement on his team’s ambition and addressing the negative news surrounding on the club with a riposte to his perceived enemies.
“Tactically it was the best game we ever played and SAF couldn’t play us,” he said.
“My players played for me, for the club and for the fans. Our performance is the best answer to people out there who are trying to destroy us from the outside.” |
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