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Faris, and 99 other finalists of Nike’s “The Chance”, visit Camp Nou

Singapore footballer Faris Ramli, along with the 99 other Nike ‘The Chance’ Global finalists took a step into the holy grail of FC Barcelon’s Camp Nou and La Masia.

If yesterday’s surprise visit to their training session by several members of FC Barcelona wasn’t enough, this evening The Chance’s 100 finalists were further rewarded for their efforts with dinner at La Masia and a tour of Camp Nou, the stadium in which those very players ply their trade.

A visit to the iconic cottage of La Masia, once home to so many future stars of the Barcelona first team (including yesterday’s guests Andrés Iniesta and Gerard Pique) was the ideal setting for these young players hoping that this week sees them begin their journey into professional football.

The players capped off the evening with a tour of Camp Nou and a chance for the young finalists who have travelled to Barcelona from all over the world to get an extraordinary close up look at this incredible stadium.

They were shown around the dressing rooms where kits with their names across the back were hung up for their arrival. Then they were able to walk down the tunnel towards the hallowed turf and of course they were shown around the trophy cabinet that today is packed with famous trophies won by this incredible football club.

Faris said: “It was an amazing experience to even be in the same stadium and training ground of FC Barcelona stars like Andres Iniesta, Pedro and Gerard Pique. We were given a tour that gave me even more inspiration to become a professional footballer. Hopefully, I can continue to give my all and it will be enough to impress the coaches here at the Global Finals.”

For more information, log on to nikeinc.com

*Content and images courtesy of Nike Football Singapore

Report : Courts Young Lions (0 – 1) Balestier Khalsa

Friday evening’s StarHub Plate Final at Jalan Besar Stadium was a low-key affair that nevertheless attracted a crowd in excess of a thousand, who saw Balestier Khalsa earn their prize with a last-minute winner against the Courts Young Lions.

While the remarkably heavy StarHub League Cup trophy will be contested one evening later, the Plate, despite being somewhat lightweight, still managed to serve up some decent fare for those who ventured down.

Both clubs fielded what could be seen as their strongest lineups, with only the injured trio of Goran Subara, Anantha Rajan and Ridwan Jamil reducing the potency of the Balestier side.

The Young Lions similarly had to do without the likes of Haniff Ja’ffar Sadique and Aqhari Abdullah going into this match, but their starting eleven looked as strong as it has done at any time lately.

Their coach Robin Chitrakar had emphasised the need not to concede an early goal, which his team managed, but they were found wanting at the other end of the 90 minutes when one centre-field slip-up allowed the Tigers to snatch the only goal of the game.

“We didn’t concede early, but we made one fatal mistake that cost us as well, as missing many excellent chances,” he said in his post-match analysis.

“But the performance of my team was very good, and I have few complaints.”

It was as a result of a relatively early Balestier offensive that the Young Lions escaped the ignominy of another early goal being conceded.

But the Tigers were the ones who suffered the most, not merely from failing to score when it would have mattered a great deal, but in losing their charismatic captain Paul Cunningham to a head wound that ended his involvement in the event.

As is the New Zealander’s custom, he came up for a free kick on 25 minutes, won on the left and floated over by Tengku Mushadad.

The tall skipper won the aerial challenge, and it might have beaten Young Lions goalkeeper Syazwan Buhari, had he not managed to push the ball onto the right-hand upright, from where it was scrambled away to safety.

Meanwhile it seemed that the Balestier captain had come off second best, and they had to reshuffle to accommodate Cunningham’s absence for the remainder of the game.

“Paul is a strong boy and he wanted to go back on,” said their assistant coach Kevin Wee, standing in for Darren Stewart at the post-match interview.

“But the coaching staff told him it was not in his best interests to continue, and that he should try and make a full recovery before our next S.League match at the end of the month.

“It was not concussion, or he would have been off to hospital. But it was a nasty head injury.”

Balestier sent on defender Yusiskandar Yusop on 32 minutes after deciding their captain, even with some heavy bandaging, would not be fit to resume.

That substitution did their cause no harm, however, as the backline held firm against a redoubtable strikeforce that included Jonathan Toto, Benjamin Lee, Sherif El-Masri and Shahfiq Ghani, with Faris Ramli joining in as El-Masri’s replacement for the final 15 minutes.

The Young Lions had their chances, but Balestier were not always occupied in merely defying their rivals with a blanket defence, instead venturing forward often to pose a threat of their own.

The first serious chance, in fact, fell to the Tigers, with a Ruhaizad Ismail cross in the eighth minute setting up Kim Min Ho, but when Syazwan managed to block the firm shot, Zulkiffli Hassim could only fire narrowly wide on the follow-up.

El Masri’s shot for the hosts on 19 minutes was blocked by his own teammate Toto, while Daniel Ong almost fumbled a powerful shot from 35 yards by Zulfahmi Arifin soon after, but the custodian reclaimed possession quickly before a lurking forward could pounce.

After the Cunningham injury the Tigers maintained their solid work rate and gave as good as they got.

A ball chipped over the defence by Park Kang Jin on 34 minutes gave Kim a chance to beat Syazwan, but his ensuing effort cleared the bar from 15 yards out.

Another screamer from Zulfahmi, who is making a habit of long-range shots that trouble opposition goalkeepers, then forced Ong into making a brilliant last-gasp save, much to the relief of the Balestier defenders.

A close call for the Young Lions ended the first half when Kim dragged his shot across the face of goal in stoppage time after Zdravko Dragicevic had nodded on a Park free kick.

Balestier looked keen to get things restarted as they were the first out onto the pitch, ahead of the referees, but they soon found themselves under pressure as Toto connected with a header from a corner only four minutes after the resumption.

The Frenchman headed the ball into the ground, however, before it bounced just over the bar.

Zulkiffli made a strong run for Balestier just after the hour mark, but could only find the side-netting when he might have been expected to do better.

Toto was involved in two more attacks that could have spelt danger for Balestier, but after intercepting a stray pass on 64 minutes, he put his shot low across the face of goal.

The former Etoile FC forward then pushed a shot straight at Ong four minutes later, when more power and better direction was probably called for.

Kim was beginning to impose himself on proceedings more and more in the meantime, though, and the player, limited to Prime League appearances due to the strength of the foreign quartet in the senior squad, got into a good position on 84 minutes after a searching run, only to fire just wide.

There was no such waywardness from him as the final minute loomed, however, after Young Lions fullback Faritz Abdul Hameed had lost the ball in midfield to Park, who was putting more and more bite into his tackles as the game wore on.

Park fed substitute Hamqaamal Shah on the left, and his crisp cross was kept well away from Syazwan’s clutches, allowing Kim to steer the ball home with his first touch from ten yards out.

Having earned themselves the win inside 90 minutes, the Balestier players accepted their medals and Cunningham, swathed in bandages, held the Plate aloft.

None of the management or officials walked up to receive medals on this occasion, preferring to keep things low key, no doubt.

It was noticeable that celebrations were fairly muted in general, and Stewart in particular disappeared down the tunnel as soon as he had heard the final whistle, leaving his trusted assistant Wee to field questions on his behalf.

“Just as the coach has said before, we saw this game as excellent preparation for our remaining S.League matches,” said Wee.

“The players decided to hand the winning prize money of S$5,000 back to the club as a token of their appreciation for what the club has done for them this season. It is their way of saying ‘thank you’ to the management.”

The newly-minted StarHub Plate will now take pride of place in the Tigers’ trophy cabinet, where it may soon enough be joined by silverware won by the club’s Prime League team, coached by none other than Wee himself.

They stand an imposing ten points over the nearest challengers with nine games to go in that competition, and even if people may be discounting the senior team’s chances of lifting the Great Eastern-YEO’S S.League trophy, that is one championship they are still endeavouring to claim this season to complete a remarkable treble.

Article taken from sleague.com, written by Paul Green

CYL Line up:
Syazwan Buhari, Faritz Abdul Hameed, Sirina Camara, Sheikh Abdul Hadi, Fazli Ayob, Hafiz Abu Sujad, Zulfahmi Arifin, Benjamin Lee (Nazrul Nazari 82″), Shahfiq Ghani, Sherif El-Masri (Faris Ramli 74″),  Jonathan Toto

 

Report : Tanjong Pagar United (1 – 2) Courts Young Lions

As they had done when the teams last met in the Great Eastern-YEO’S S.League earlier in the season, the Courts Young Lions proved too good for Tanjong Pagar United when they crossed swords in the StarHub Plate semifinals match at Queenstown Stadium on Monday evening.

Unlike the 5-0 rout in April, however, they had to settle for a come-from-behind 2-1 win this time, even though they certainly looked the part in the second half when, in a matter of minutes, they erased an eighth-minute deficit and turned the game around completely.

The Young Lions began brightly enough, with Jonathan Toto heading just wide from his captain Hafiz Abu Sujad’s seventh-minute cross, while a solid attack a minute earlier had seen a shot from Zulfahmi Arifin blocked on the Tanjong Pagar line.

It was to prove a fairly physical game, with the stretcher-bearers entering the pitch quite regularly to attend to players who had come off second best in some of the more meaty challenges, but it was far from being a dirty game, simply a fiercely competitive one.

Tanjong Pagar have not been enjoying the best of fortunes of late, but they usually are full of endeavour, and this was the case here as well.

Midfielder Takaya Kawanabe and Carlos Delgado were not as influential as may have been hoped, however, and their younger opponents managed to keep them quiet for much of the game.

Jaguars coach Terry Pathmanathan gave a start to Syed Karim, who has been sidelined with injury for much of the season, but he had to come off after 57 minutes, making way for the player who has often been deployed in his absence, 24-year-old Azhar Ahmad.

Haitian striker Gilbert Bayonne was probably the best of the home side’s foreign contingent, as he worked tirelessly to get things going up front, shouldering the burden alone for the most part.

At least he had help when it came to dead-ball situations, and it was from a corner swung over from the left by Delgado that the Jaguars took the lead after only eight minutes.

Bayonne, stationed at the far post, headed the ball back across goal, and defender Hafiz Osman, who came up for the play as usual, managed to slam the ball past Syazwan Buhari with unstoppable force.

Asraf Abdul Rashid was a constant presence on the flanks and kept the Young Lions defenders busy throughout, while for the visitors Benjamin Lee had a very strong game, even if Toto was doing more of the unsung work up front, shielding the ball from opponents and bringing others into the game.

Another to shine was Sirina Camara, who was playing in a central defensive role, yet had time to make many advances down the left flank, showing such abundant speed that he had the Tanjong Pagar defenders totally at his mercy.

Sherif El-Masri was his usual enterprising self, offering shots from close range twice in the opening half-hour, even if he was unable to find the target each time.

Bayonne, though, might have done better for the hosts five minutes before half-time when making a fast break on the right, but with his rushed shot from 20 yards going just wide, the chance to open up a two-goal lead went begging.

Zulfahmi meanwhile was one of the more dangerous Young Lions midfielders, never afraid to spray passes around or to test Jaguars custodian Shamsudin Hashim.

In first-half stoppage time he made a searching solo run, and his eventual shot was superbly tipped over the bar by Shamsudin, whose handling looked impeccable for most of the match.

But for all that hard work in the first half, Tanjong Pagar were to find an even more resolute Young Lions outfit in the second period.

A series of corners were won by the visitors during the opening ten minutes of the half, and the constant pressure appeared to be too much for the Jaguars, who could not find the rhythm they had enjoyed in the first half for quite some time.

It was to prove too long for them to soak up the pressure as they conceded twice in a little over a minute, due to some high-intensity approach work by their rivals.

After a few Young Lions corners had been won and dealt with, Zulfahmi remained out wide on the right and was able to feed Fazli Ayob a pass that the speedy striker delivered rapidly to the near post from the byline.

Nobody in the somewhat static Tanjong Pagar defence picked up the run through from rightback Faritz Abdul Hameed, who stabbed the ball home with glee despite the tight amount of room available to him, his goal-scoring instincts giving him the edge over some hesitant defenders.

Shell-shocked by that sharp riposte, the hosts failed to regroup quickly enough and succumbed a second time little more than a minute later.

Lee, who had run at the Jaguars defence willingly for much of the game, took off on a diagonal run that began on the left and then unleashed an unstoppable rising shot from 25 yards out that rocketed into the top right corner of the net to give his side a deserved lead.

That spell of ‘switching off’ undid all the Tanjong Pagar players’ hard work in the first half and made their task so much more difficult for the remainder of the game.

There was, however, one moment when the Young Lions appeared to lose their own concentration in a way that might have proven costly.

On 73 minutes, a long ball out of the Jaguars defence from Zahid Ahmad looked a regulation catch for Syazwan, but it proved trickier than expected, and the young goalkeeper dropped the ball in front of the lurking Bayonne.

Suddenly finding the ball at his feet, the tall striker looked up to see a gaping goal at his mercy, but somehow managed to screw the ball wide, to the anguish of teammates and fans alike.

Bayonne had another opportunity five minutes from time when he lunged at the far post to a cross from the left by Asraf, but he could only find the side-netting that time.

The last chance for the Jaguars came in stoppage time when substitute Jonathan Xu, who had come on for the injured Hafiz Nor to operate down the right flank, fired a last-gasp volley at close range, but the ball skimmed narrowly over the bar, much to his regret.

Young Lions coach Robin Chitrakar was pleased to see his side advance to the Plate Final that takes place at their Jalan Besar home on Friday.

“We played very well, and the boys worked their socks off tonight,” he said.

“Once again we conceded an early goal, and I wasn’t very happy about that, but the boys fought back strongly and it was a good performance.

“I know Balestier Khalsa, who we will be playing in the Final, will be a stronger side than Tanjong Pagar, but we should be ready for them.

“We’ll have Faris Ramli back for the Final. He was on the bench today, but we did not risk him, saving him for the Final instead.”

Pathmanathan was at a loss to explain his team’s capitulation.

“The Young Lions were much too good,” he said.

“We looked alright at training, as usual, but we never seem to be able to reproduce that in matches, and we keep making those same mistakes. We gave away too many cheap corners before they scored their goals, and that’s disappointing.

“Unfortunately I only have 16 players to work with, and some of the newer ones are proving to be of a lower standard as well, so I can’t make any meaningful substitutions, as I have no depth and there’s nobody I can send on to change the course of the game.

“I can only work with these same players before our next match and hope they can do better during the remaining matches (in the league).”

Article taken from sleague.com, written by Paul Green

CYL Line up:
Syazwan Buhari, Faritz Abdul Hameed, Sirina Camara, Sheikh Abdul Hadi, Fazli Ayob (Haniff Sadique 84″), Hafiz Abu Sujad, Shamil Shari (Shahfiq Ghani 59″), Zulfahmi Arifin, Benjamin Lee, Sherif El-Masri (Nazrul Nazari 76″),  Jonathan Toto

 

Report : Courts Young Lions (1 – 2) Hougang United

Hougang United sealed their place in the StarHub League Cup quarterfinals, along with Group C seeds Home United, after they defeated the Courts Young Lions 2-1 in their pool match at Jalan Besar Stadium on Sunday evening.

Mamadou Diallo opened the scoring for last season’s runners-up after just six minutes, and Azhar Sairudin sealed the points with a well-placed shot outside the box six minutes from time.

Despite Young Lions skipper Hafiz Abu Sujad forcing a tense finale with a nice finish in injury time, their second successive defeat in the competition relegated them to the plate tournament, where they will face fellow eliminated side Tanjong Pagar United.

Young Lions head coach Robin Chitrakar rang in a few changes from the side that lost to the Protectors at Bishan three days ago.

Danish winger Benjamin Lee was omitted amid claims of a groin strain and was replaced by Nazrul Ahmad Nazari on the right, while Shahfiq Ghani started in place of Fazli Ayob, who was relegated to the bench.

Hougang’s Nenad Bacina also made some switches from the side that had held Home to a 1-1 draw in the league the previous weekend.

Club top scorer Jordan Webb sat out owing to a suspension carried over from the 2011 edition, and Croat defender Stanislav Vidakovic was confirmed as a long-term casualty after injuring his knee in their last outing.

Fadhil Salim and Faizal Amir were left on the bench, with skipper Lau Meng Meng, Ridzuan Fatah Hassan, Sobrie Mazelan and Syaqir Sulaiman preferred in the starting eleven.

The Cheetahs threatened to score as early as the second minute, when they were awarded a direct free kick outside the box, but the effort from Ante Barac went over without troubling Young Lions goalkeeper Syazwan Buhari.

Agony was turned into ecstasy for the playmaker four minutes later, when his 50-yard free kick deep down the right was misread by the inexperienced Syazwan and Guinean striker Diallo directed the ball into an empty net with his head.

The 31-year-old nearly doubled the lead for the visitors himself on 15 minutes when his stinging shot outside the box flew over, while Diallo forced a superb save off Syazwan with his strong effort soon after.

While Hougang were enjoying the lion’s share of play, it must be said that the Young Lions made their lives easier in the first half with stray passes in midfield that allowed the white shirts to regroup and launch fresh attacks.

The closest the hosts got to testing the two-time League Cup runners-up in the first half was well into added time, when Sherif El-Masri crossed from the left and saw Shahfiq’s resulting header going straight into Ridzuan’s arms.

Aware that they were 45 minutes from elimination in the main event, the Young Lions stepped up their game after the break and dominated possession early in the second half.

As was the case against Home a few days before, though, the red shirts found it difficult to find a way past a stubborn Hougang backline.

With only two off-target efforts midway in the second half to show for, they nearly found themselves falling further behind when Hougang threatened again in the final quarter-hour of the game.

Sobrie came very close to repaying Bacina’s faith in giving him a rare start when he squandered one shot and one header in the space of three minutes.

But Azhar saved his teammate’s blushes with a well-executed low grounder off a Barac free kick played low from the right on 84 minutes to virtually seal the points and qualification into the next stage.

The Young Lions were not going to go down without a fight, though, and an injury-time counterattack led by French striker Jonathan Toto found Hafiz unmarked on the left.

The 21-year-old raced in and slotted home past a sprawling Ridzuan to reduce the deficit.

The Cheetahs nearly restored their two-goal cushion immediately after when a one-two between substitute Nurhilmi Jasni and Sobrie sent the former clear inside the box.

His effort from a very narrow angle beat Syazwan, but bobbled across the goal.

Toto and Hafiz then combined at the other end to threaten once again, but Ridzuan was more than equal to the swerving shot as he palmed it away and secured his side’s opening win of their League Cup campaign.

Chitrakar was left rueing another missed opportunity for his side as he spoke on his anguish in seeing them complete the group stage with a record of two losses in both group games.

“The early goals we conceded against Home and Hougang quickly demoralised our boys,” he lamented.

“In both games, we didn’t have the best of starts and conceded goals from free kicks. We have to learn to be more alert and settle down more quickly.

“The boys tried to come back and moved the ball much more quickly in the second half, but we couldn’t capitalise on our late chances until the goal.”

Meanwhile, Bacina was pleased to see his side come out with all three points with the effort they put in for the win.

“We controlled much of the game, especially in the first half,” he said.

“We closed them down on the flanks, especially where Sherif was. We were aggressive enough and tried to stop his delivery of crosses, which were the reasons why we put the pressure on them up front.

“We won a lot of possession in the final third, particularly in the first 45 minutes, after the pressure we exerted to their midfield. In the second half, they appeared to have more possession, but we were more dangerous up front.”

The former SAFFC anchor noted that the victory was a vindication of his decision to rotate some players in the lineup.

“For us as a club, we are hungry to go as far as possible,” he continued.

“Some players who have not played regularly will have a chance, and I have been placing a particular emphasis on us keeping our shape and system.

“The players knew how to control last couple of minutes and keep their emotions down against the Young Lions. That’s why we won and deserved to go into the quarterfinals.”

Article taken from sleague.com, written by Gary Koh

CYL Line up:
Syazwan Buhari, Faritz Abdul Hameed (Syafiq Zainal 82″), Sirina Camara, Sheikh Abdul Hadi, Aqhari Abdullah (Shamil Sharif 73″), Zulfahmi Arifin (Fazli Ayob 69″), Nazrul Nazari, Shahfiq Ghani, Sherif El-Masri, Jonathan Toto

 

 

Report : Home United (1 – 0) Courts Young Lions

Home United started their quest for StarHub League Cup glory on a winning note as they edged a stubborn Courts Young Lions side 1-0 at Bishan Stadium on Thursday evening.

An early Firdaus Idros tap-in from Jeremy Chiang’s cross was enough to give the home side all three points, despite some fierce resistance from their Group C opponents.

After conceding the early goal, the visitors dominated possession throughout the match and pegged their more illustrious opponents back in their own half on numerous occasions.

On top of that, they threatened the Protectors’ goal with a couple of good chances, but Lionel Lewis, back in action for the first time since 17 June, showed superb form to earn the Protectors’ first clean sheet in more than ten weeks.

While the hopes of qualifying for the quarterfinals are slim for the Young Lions, they still have a chance to do so, with a victory against Hougang United in their next group match key to advancement.

They can certainly take heart from their performance, for it is not every day that teams come to Bishan and force Home into a defensive-minded game.

Young Lions head coach Robin Chitrakar was certainly proud of his charges despite their loss.

“I thought the boys did enough to get at least a point,” commented the 35-year-old.

“You can see that they were trying and pushing Home United on the back foot, especially towards the last half-hour. Home were packing their whole defence and I was really shocked at how they sat back and defended; it was not easy for us then.

“It is rare that Home United sit back against a young side like the Young Lions, but the boys did their very best and a draw might be a fair result.”

Chitrakar made a slew of changes to the side that defeated SAFFC in a league assignment on Sunday, with Fazli Ayob, Sherif El-Masri, Jonathan Toto and Zulfahmi Arifin replacing Shahfiq Ghani, Nazrul Ahmad Nazari, Syafiq Zainal and Shamil Sharif in the starting lineup.

Home meanwhile came into the match without the suspended Frederic Mendy, which allowed the attacking foursome of Qiu Li, Shotaro Ihata, Indra Sahdan Daud and Firdaus to start, while skipper Shi Jiayi started on the bench, as did Central African Republic defender Franklin Anzite.

The hosts started the match in perfect fashion, finding the breakthrough just six minutes in when Chiang sprinted past the defence after a neat one-two with a teammate down the left flank.

The 27-year-old neatly made his way into the area, before squaring the ball for Firdaus to tap into an empty net.

One might have thought that the cue for them to run their inexperienced opponents over, especially when it took some desperate defending to keep Firdaus from tapping in again on 14 minutes, but the Young Lions had other ideas.

The backline helmed by skipper Hafiz Abu Sujad soon settled, and they began to control the ball well, bringing it up smoothly from defence to attack.

El-Masri was outstanding on the left flank, in particular, and he was instrumental in leading the charge as the visitors sought to restore parity.

They created a couple of chances, with Toto’s shot deflected just wide, while Fazli stung the gloves of an alert Lewis with a volley after a corner was only half-cleared.

Firdaus dragged a shot wide after being set up nicely by Ihata at the other end, but it was in Home’s half that the action was really happening.

Fazli found the side netting after being up through by Benjamin Lee on 27 minutes, before the latter could have turned Fazli’s cross in if not for the swift intervention of Lewis.

Moments later, Sirina Camara delivered a peachy cross towards the middle for Toto, but the 21-year-old could not make sufficient contact and sent his free header over the bar.

Chances and possession were all going the Young Lions’ way, but although they were dominant, they could not find a goal before the break.

Chitrakar tried to switch things around in the second half, replacing Lee on the right with Nazrul to inject more pace into the attack.

But it was Home that made the bolder tactical switch, choosing to pack the defence with personnel in an attempt to defend their slender lead.

That gave the young visitors plenty of possession, but they were unable to create as many chances or look as threatening as they had done before the interval.

A rare Aqhari Abdullah shot was easy for Lewis, and the Protectors custodian was quick off his line to stop Nazrul after Chiang slipped to allow the 21-year-old a rare opening.

Nazrul also fired a shot from distance over the bar on 66 minutes as the Young Lions continued to hog possession.

There were no clear-cut chances for them, though, as Home did a good job holding the visitors away from the penalty area.

Shahfiq was eventually brought on for Fazli, but even the precocious starlet’s presence could not tip the balance the Young Lions’ way as he managed only a few stray shots.

A last roll of the dice came when Syafiq replaced El-Masri with ten minutes to go, but the Singapore Sports School graduate was unable to make an impact as the home side hung on to take all three points.

Protectors head coach Lee Lim Saeng was pleased to get off to a winning start in the League Cup tournament, and felt the points were more important than the margin.

“I am happy with the result,” said the Korean.

“The weather was very hot and humid, so the players looked a bit tired on the field. We did try to score more, but we thought that getting three points is more important than getting the goals in this match.”

Despite Shi and Anzite being left out of the starting eleven, Lee made it clear he was not going to go into this competition fielding second-stringers for the sake of it.

“We are now out of the RHB Cup, and our league position is not so good,” he said.

“So now in every match, we want to field our best players.”

Article taken from sleague.com, written by Koh Yizhe

CYL Line up:
Syazwan Buhari, Faritz Abdul Hameed, Sirina Camara, Sheikh Abdul Hadi, Fazli Ayob (Shahfiq Ghani 65″), Hafiz Abu Sujad, Aqhari Abdullah, Zulfahmi Arifin, Benjamin Lee (Nazrul Nazari 50″), Sherif El-Masri (Syafiq Zainal 80″), Jonathan Toto

 

 

Report : Courts Young Lions (2 – 1) SAF FC

The Courts Young Lions continued their giant-slaying feats on Sunday evening, following up on their victory over Malaysia’s Harimau Muda three days earlier with a 2-1 win over title-chasing SAFFC.

The match at Jalan Besar Stadium was an ill-tempered affair as three players were sent off, including SAFFC defenders Daniel Bennett and Zulfadli Zainal Abidin, as well as Young Lions forward Haniff Ja’ffar Sadique.

Shahfiq Ghani’s well-placed shot right before half-time and an Aqhari Abdullah free kick on 67 minutes were enough to overturn SAFFC’s opener through Fazrul Nawaz.

The result secured the Young Lions’ third win in a row and their sixth of the season, as they appear to be turning the corner after a tough start to the campaign.

Despite the unsavoury red card that left them finishing with ten men, the Young Lions will be pleased with their best run of form in recent memory, and to win without regulars like Jonathan Toto, Sherif El-Masri, Al-Qaasimy Abdul Rahman and Faris Ramli was even sweeter.

For SAFFC, in contrast, it was a night to forget.

This was a match that they were expected to win comfortably, considering their form in all competitions since their return to action from the international break in early June.

Holding substantial possession throughout the match was not enough for them, however, as they lacked the quality in the final third and failed to deliver the killer ball.

At the back, the story read equally poorly as the much-needed concentration was absent, and they immediately conceded a goal after taking the lead.

Their discipline was also called into question as six different players found themselves in referee K. Kalimuthu’s book at the end of the 90 minutes.

“I think a lot of guys were off colour today,” said Warriors coach Richard Bok.

“It may be overconfidence, maybe it is complacency, since the Courts Young Lions are without a few players. In a team of eleven, maybe one or two can be off, but certainly not more than half!

“Ever since we started the second round, I thought we played well, we defended and kept the ball well. Today was entirely the opposite.

“Hopefully this is just a one-off event. We’ll regroup and look forward to the League Cup.”

The visitors controlled the ball from the start as Mislav Karoglan fired a warning shot to start the match in the sixth minute.

That was one of the lucky times a shot was actually produced to finish the attack, though.

Most of the time, SAFFC’s attacks simply broke down before a ball could be delivered into the area. For all the possession they had, the Warriors could not convert them into chances.

The best chance of the half for them probably came on 25 minutes when Fazrul managed to slip the ball to Tatsuro Inui in a crowded penalty box, but with so many players covering, it was expectedly blocked.

The Young Lions had their odd chance at the other end, with Aqhari volleying weakly before Inui’s chance.

A mundane first half badly needed a goal, and it finally came a minute before the break.

Karoglan danced his way into the area before squaring the ball to the lurking Fazrul, who had the easiest of tasks to tap the ball in from six yards out for his seventh goal of the season.

While the Young Lions defence was suspect on that occasion for not closing Karoglan down or keeping an eye on Fazrul, the Warriors fared little better.

The Choa Chu Kang-based outfit had been developing a habit of letting goals in immediately after scoring, and this match was no different.

A cross was floated into the area by Nazrul Ahmad Nazari from the right in the Young Lions’ first retaliatory attack, and Shahfiq was left unmarked on the penalty spot to restore parity almost immediately.

The second half was a stark contrast to the first 45 minutes, as SAFFC attempted to take the lead again.

Inui’s free kick on 49 minutes was punched clear by Syazwan Buhari at an awkward height, but fortunately for the 18-year-old, Shimpei Sakurada’s follow-up shot was straight at him.

The pace was much faster by now, and while SAFFC still held most of the possession, the Young Lions looked more threatening in their counterattacks.

It was from such a break that they were able to score their second goal on 67 minutes. Benjamin Lee’s strong run was halted at the edge of the area by hard challenges from the SAFFC defence, with Marin Vidosevic adjudged to have been the guilty party.

The free kick that came was indeed in a dangerous position, but it still took a quality touch from Aqhari to curl the ball over the wall and into the top corner of Shahril Jantan’s goal to give the Young Lions a 2-1 lead.

SAFFC expectedly poured men forward, but before they could muster an attempt at goal, they suffered another setback.

Zulfadli, who had collected a yellow card very early in the game, committed another hard foul as the Young Lions were able to start another counterattack, and Kalimuthu did not hesitate to pull out the red card.

Despite going a man down, the visitors were still able to maintain possession, with Karoglan’s shot blocked by a covering defender after he was put through by Fazrul on 79 minutes.

Just a minute later, the Croatian put his strike partner through, but the latter was wasteful and blasted over the bar from a good position.

Karoglan had another shot saved on 85 minutes, with Fazrul caught offside by the rebound.

All hope of a draw was then lost for the Warriors when Bennett and Young Lions substitute Haniff kicked out at each other on the ground in a messy injury-time tangle.

Kalimuthu rightly sent both players off.

Despite losing a man to a red card, Young Lions head coach Robin Chitrakar was a happy man at the post-match interview as he paid tribute to the team’s fighting spirit and determination.

“The boys really stood up and fought hard for the win,” he told sleague.com.

“The key was the willingness to win, and that was shown the way we poured forward after we conceded. SAFFC are a strong side, but we performed above expectations, and the boys who stepped in were determined to do the same job as they did in the previous match.

“We have to keep the boys’ feet on the ground. It is easy to get carried away after results like these, so we have to keep them focused in the coming games.”

Article taken from sleague.com, written by Koh Yizhe

CYL Line up:
Syazwan Buhari, Faritz Abdul Hameed, Sirina Camara, Sheikh Abdul Hadi, Hafiz Abu Sujad, Shamil Sharif (Zulfahmi Arifin 55″), Aqhari Abdullah, Benjamin Lee, Nazrul Nazari (Fazli Ayob 76″), Shahfiq Ghani, Syafiq Zainal (Haniff Sadique 67″)

 

Report : Courts Young Lions (1 – 0) Harimau Muda

A clinical disposal of their arch-nemesis from Malaysia gave the Courts Young Lions the right to call themselves the young Kings of the Jungle on Thursday evening.

With much sway and swagger, the Young Lions played to a 1-0 win over the Harimau Muda, the pleasure of victory made all the sweeter by the fact that it took place in front of their delighted fans at Jalan Besar Stadium.

Both sides were coming into the match fresh from recent exertions, the Malaysians from a draining game in the S.League against Tanjong Pagar United, and many of the Young Lions from an age-group competition in Indonesia.

If they were tired, though, it did not show as this match played to a frenetic pace from the very first whistle.

Young Lions midfielders Sirina Camara and Sherif El-Masri were indefatigable attackers down both flanks from the start, persistently creating opportunities at Izham Tarmini Roslan’s goal.

At the back, Camara proved his worth as well, often stymying the Young Tigers attacks with razor-sharp clearances.

But a greater chunk of the action saw the hosts, playing in front of the television cameras, going on the attack.

As the eight-minute mark arrived, midfielder Hafiz Abu Sujad cleared a porous Harimau Muda defensive line and muscled his way down towards the edge of the field.

A sharp, low pass to forward Jonathan Toto deep inside the box led to a cheeky attempt at a back-heel that was close to going in, until Izham scooped it up at his right-hand post.

El-Masri then sent Toto chasing after a chance two minutes later with a quick low pass from the left, but the ball screamed past all in the vicinity of the six-yard box, the French forward trying in vain to reach it and drill home.

The pairing of El-Masri and Toto as feeder and finisher was proving too hot to contain for the Harimau Muda, who were missing the likes of Mahalli Jasuli, Fadhli Shas and Gary Robbat.

As the match headed towards the middle of the first half, the Young Lions were roaring more loudly than their opponents were growling.

Indeed, Robin Chitrakar’s charges were holding the lion’s share of possession – no pun intended – as they attacked ravenously, leaving the Young Tigers with a few ineffective counters of their own.

All that was missing was a goal, and even that was corrected after 29 minutes of play.

It came from a corner delivered by the ever-dangerous El-Masri, who struck it in search of the towering Toto.

The former Etoile FC hitman did not disappoint, a powerful downward header breaching Izham’s grip as the orb trickled over the line.

The Young Lions fans leapt up in sheer joy, having had to endure agony on 14 minutes when Faris Ramli had to be substituted with what appeared to be a very bad ankle injury.

But the entry of Shahfiq Ghani made up for it, and the hosts went into the break one goal up against the Young Tigers, whose coach Ong Kim Swee was shown the way to the stands in a game packed with drama.

As if sensing the heat, the heavens opened to bring a sheen of rain upon the players returning from the half-time break.

But that did not douse the hunger in Toto, who again menaced the Malaysian backline four minutes into the second period when another corner brought his thumping header downward again.

The difference this time was that Izham was in the perfect position to collect, and the Young Tigers, having endured a good bit of pushing from their opponents, were now determined to push back.

Midfielders Fandi Othman and Ahmad Hazwan Bakri provided much of the spark for them, and the latter especially was constantly threatening the goal, guarded by Syazwan Buhari.

But as the Young Lions defence held firm, the attacks were well neutralised, forcing the visitors to attempt inaccurate potshots from distance as the match climaxed towards the final whistle.

When the last good opportunity on the night presented itself, though, it was to the Young Lions.

On 79 minutes, El-Masri threaded the ball to substitute Nazrul Ahmad Nazari from the middle, setting the latter up for a one-on-one with custodian Izham.

It looked like Nazrul was certain to get goal, but Izham showed good instinct to get his legs to the ball, sending it ricocheting over his crossbar.

Barely a minute later, El-Masri placed his glancing header just past the left upright, yet by then it was clear the Young Lions would get their gritty and deserving victory.

Chitrakar for one was very pleased with the outcome.

“The boys did well and got the three points,” said the 35-year-old.

“They created the chances to do well. And defensively, they stayed composed to contain the Harimau Muda players.

“It shows how the team’s developing, growing more matured. We are a development side, and we showed improvement today from our earlier games; to constantly improve is the key for us.”

Ong was represented by his assistant coach Hassan Sazali at the post-match conference.

“We played a good game, but we lost,” he stated plainly.

“Today we tried for full points, we even tried to come back in the second half. We played a much more pressing game, but the Young Lions were too resolute and organised, especially in defence.

“We now have to concentrate on Sunday’s game against Albirex (Niigata (Singapore)).”

Article taken from sleague.com, written by Elwyn Lee

CYL Line up:
Syazwan Buhari, Faritz Abdul Hameed, Sirina Camara, Sheikh Abdul Hadi, Hafiz Abu Sujad, Faris Ramli (Shahfiq Ghani 14″), Aqhari Abdullah, Zulfahmi Arifin (Shamil Sharif 71″), Benjamin Lee (Nazrul Nazari 62″), Sherif El-Masri, Jonathan Toto

Report : Woodlands Wellington (1 – 2) Courts Young Lions

Woodlands Wellington were left kicking themselves as a late comeback from the Courts Young Lions denied them the chance to claim full points at Woodlands Stadium on Friday evening.

Leading 1-0 going into the half-time break thanks to a Moon Soon Ho goal, the northern outfit conceded two goals in the final 13 minutes to end up 1-2 losers.

Robin Chitrakar’s boys celebrated climbing three spots up the table to eighth place, displacing Hougang United, who had reached that position only the evening before when they had beaten Tanjong Pagar United.

For Woodlands, however, the result meant they were firmly rooted to second from bottom, making their encounter with Geylang United next week a potentially decisive battle in determining the destination of the wooden spoon.

Assistant coach Clement Lee, speaking on behalf of Salim Moin at the post-match interview, made no bones over the way the game had gone for his side.

“We are frustrated,” he said.

“It’s really frustrating, because we were working for this for one month. We worked our socks off during the month-long break, looking to make a winning comeback.

“We dominated three-quarters of the game tonight and should have taken something out of it. We’ll – we have to work even harder, cut down on individual errors that we had seen today.

“It’s been eleven games without a win. Frustrating!”

The Rams’ pain was not hard to feel, for they had truly fought tooth and nail for a result.

If they had been away for a month-long break, the manner in which they had started the game did not suggest it, as they eased into proceedings quickly and ran amok for long spells.

Quickly dominating possession, it took them all of 14 minutes to silence the Young Lions supporters when Moon struck an audacious opener.

Picking up the ball from a pass on the right flank, the Korean was curiously left unmarked as he moved towards the edge of the penalty area, and with verve and composure he pulled the trigger firmly.

The ball banged the post on the right side before landing neatly behind the one on the left, leaving Syazwan Buhari gaping in disbelief.

The goal jolted the Young Lions, who tried to fashion a response quickly, but their efforts were tepid and tentative.

With 21 minutes gone, a dangerous free kick from the right by Sherif El-Masri came off Fazli Ayob’s head and straight into the arms of Woodlands custodian Ahmadulhaq Che Omar.

Shortly afterwards, rookie Sufianto Salleh was free in the Woodlands box, but he skied his shot from the edge of the six-yard box.

While the visitors seemed rusty and lacklustre, the Rams were fluid and confident, advancing towards their objective with confidence and efficiency throughout the first half.

This carried on into the early phase of the second, as Salim’s charges were looking to get another goal, knowing that the Young Lions were more than capable of a revival with only one goal to chase.

Yellow shirts buzzed around the visitors’ encampment, and on 48 minutes Goh Swee Swee spotted an opportunity, lobbing a left-footer from outside the box.

The shot caught Syazwan off his line, but the dip came a touch late and the ball landed excruciatingly on the roof of the net.

Sensing that his team needed fresh legs to deal with the Woodlands onslaught, Chitrakar put Nazrul Ahmad Nazari on for a fading Sufianto quickly, and the move put some fizz back into the visitors’ attack.

Within a minute the 21-year-old came blazing down the right flank, and his shot from the right of the six-yard box cracked the outside of Ahmadulhaq’s near post.

But poor passing bedeviled the Young Lions as passes were wasted or otherwise intercepted by the home side, who were always ready with a counterattack to play.

Goh got the better of Young Lions man Sirina Camara down the middle on one such occasion, running clear from the right and seeming all set to raid Syazwan’s goal with Moon in support from the centre.

It could have been a straightforward 2-0 had Goh passed to his teammate, who was in a prime position, but he decided to go it alone, and his feeble attempt from a narrow angle rolled placidly into the arms of a relieved Syazwan.

From then on, the pendulum began to shift as the Young Lions picked up the pace in the final 20 minutes, with Camara and El-Masri deftly pulling the strings from the middle.

On 77 minutes Camara pulled away from two markers with some sublime dribbling skill, and before long he was cantering down the left and into the Woodlands box.

A crisp low pass into space found Nazrul at the far side, and the latter’s connection sent the ball neatly into the right-hand corner of Ahmadulhaq’s goal.

1-1 it was, and all of a sudden it seemed like the Young Lions could win it.

Three minutes from time, they did just that.

Following the trail Camara had blazed for the leveller, El-Masri stormed down his favoured left flank, skipped past the Rams defence and laid off a low pass.

Waiting at the far end this time was Faris Ramli, who surprised many in the stadium by playing in the game at all, but it turned out that winning Nike’s “The Chance” competition recently did not stop him from playing on for the Young Lions.

Riding high on confidence following his personal achievement, he smacked an emphatic volley that flew into the same right corner of the Woodlands goal, giving his team the lead.

That silenced the Rams and their boisterous supporters, even as the hosts huffed and puffed in a bid to restore parity in the final minutes.

Aloysius Yap, who had come on as a substitute early in the second half, could have brought the house down even as regulation time came to an end.

The one-time Balestier Khalsa man was at the end of a good Woodlands buildup that started with captain Daniel Hammond, himself a Tigers alumnus, surging from the rear to aid his side’s rescue efforts.

Hammond’s pass to Goh – who had been with Balestier before himself – was then shuffled on to Yap, who cracked the crossbar with a shot from some 20 yards out, but there was to be no joy for him as the ball came back into play.

A minute later, Fabien Lewis had the final chance of the game when his overhead kick from off a corner looked promising until it sailed a good yard past Syazwan’s left-hand post.

That left the hosts with a bitter pill to swallow, as they have now failed to record a competitive victory since 19 February, when they had beaten Geylang 3-1 at Woodlands.

For Chitrakar and his Young Lions, however, it was a good way to start the second half of their league campaign, after they were given a torrid time for much of the game.

“We had a nervous start,” admitted the former Singapore international.

“It took a while to pick up the pieces and create the chances. With a few new players in the team today, and with (substitute) Zulfahmi Arifin just back, it took a while for us to build up.

“But in the second half, we made the chances and made them count. The mental strength of the boys, coming back from a goal down to finish 2-1 up, speaks well for the fighting spirit of this team.”

Article taken from sleague.com, written by Elwyn Lee

CYL Line up:
Syazwan Buhari, Al-Qaasimy Rahman, Faritz Abdul Hameed, Sirina Camara, Sheikh Abdul Hadi, Fazli Ayob (Haniff Sadique 71″), Hafiz Abu Sujad, Faris Ramli, Aqhari Abdullah (Zulfahmi Arifin 58″), Sherif El-Masri, Sufianto Salleh (Nazrul Nazari 50″)

 

Report : Home United (3 – 1) Courts Young Lions

For the second time in a week, Home United found themselves behind only four minutes into a game in front of their fans at Bishan Stadium.

But while Thailand’s Chonburi FC ended their Tuesday visit on the winning side, the Courts Young Lions were left with nothing other than that early goal as they finished on the wrong end of a 3-1 scoreline on Sunday evening.

Jonathan Toto gave the visitors a dream start when he scored off a Benjamin Lee cutback, but Firdaus Idros levelled matters on the quarter-hour mark with an opportunistic run following good work from Qiu Li and Frederic Mendy.

Mendy then completed the turnaround with a second-half double that lifted the Protectors into second spot, giving them the perfect tonic ahead of a challenging fortnight on both domestic and continental fronts.

Home pulled a big surprise when Japanese defender Kenji Arai was named in the starting lineup, having put off surgery for a nagging knee ligament problem to help an ailing rearguard.

Arai was fielded at leftback to contain the threat offered by the visitors’ Lee, but even with Masrezwan Masturi deployed in a supplementary wingback role, the hosts still found themselves trailing early on.

Feeling the momentum carrying over from their recent good run, the Young Lions attacked down the right, Lee doing the sensible thing with a sharp cutback that approached the edge of the penalty area.

Three Home defenders missed the ball, but not Toto, who swept in from the middle of the park to make firm contact and steer past Lionel Lewis.

That had the Young Lions fans singing for their boys in blue and white, but Home were stung into action quickly, Qiu pulling a ball from the left ten minutes in that Firdaus just failed to meet.

Qiu was having a particularly inspired game after disappointing against Chonburi in midweek, although he was by no means the only player who turned it on for the men in red.

Arai looked a lot more imposing at the back after conceding the early goal, while Nor Azli Yusoff was a willing man at rightback, doing his best to thwart former Protectors darling Sherif El-Masri whenever the two crossed paths.

All eyes were on the shaven-headed Qiu, though, and he responded by playing the architect’s role for the Protectors’ equaliser on 15 minutes.

A ball aimed for Mendy in the box was lofted in from the left, and while the Frenchman was unable to get a direct header on goal due to the presence of a marker, Firdaus was well-placed to storm in for a thumping finish.

From then on, the hosts gradually began to show signs of controlling the game, although Shi Jiayi should have done better with his headed attempt off John Wilkinson’s free kick delivery on 19 minutes.

Wilkinson came close to getting onto the scoresheet himself on the half-hour mark when another smart lobbed play by Qiu found him around the edge of the area, but his calmly-played soft shot smacked into the left upright with Syazwan Buhari stranded.

Despite these promising moments in attack and a more composed look at the back, Lee Lim Saeng seemed unhappy at various developments as he barked various instructions from the technical area.

The Korean also made two substitutions relatively early on, taking an injured Firdaus off for Shotaro Ihata on 35 minutes and sending Indra Sahdan Daud on for Wilkinson at the break.

If those moves were intended to add more bite up front, they worked, for the Young Lions defence, so resolute in numbers in the first half, crumbled badly for much of the second period.

Qiu was dispossessed towards the left by the Young Lions’ Lee, but Franklin Anzite came in to take the ball back and cross for Mendy, who met the ball at the far post to put Home 2-1 up.

The visitors were beginning to struggle, and Faritz Abdul Hameed in particular was being hung out to dry by a Home attack that seemed to identify him as the weak spot to exploit.

The worst thing was that Robin Chitrakar had no credible replacement for the 22-year-old, so he had no choice but to see his charges brave wave after wave of attacks from the Protectors.

Indra had a penalty claim dismissed just before the hour mark, before teeing up a shot on 72 minutes that Faritz barely managed to keep out on the line.

It was eventually left to Mendy to settle the game once again, when he rose well and steered a long lob from Shi beyond a marooned Syazwan’s reach with twelve minutes to go.

The Protectors could have had even more goals to delight their fans, had they not busied themselves with the comparatively less exhausting cat-and-mouse game they were playing with the Young Lions defence.

Qiu did get a shot on goal in injury time after being fed by Ihata, but the 30-year-old directed it straight at Syazwan, much to the goalkeeper’s relief.

But that was nothing compared to the relief felt by the Protectors, as they managed yet another turnaround win to stay in the title hunt and steel their nerves for two key games that could decide how busy they will be for the second half of the season.

Lee: Three points most important

Home United coach Lee Lim Saeng was relieved to see his side pick up three precious points after beating the Courts Young Lions 3-1 on Sunday evening.

The result lifted the Protectors up to second spot, five points behind Bruneian side DPMM FC, as Malaysia’s Harimau Muda were pegged back by Tampines Rovers in a concurrent fixture.

“We cannot afford to lose points, because we want to catch up with the Brunei team,” said Lee.

“Fortunately, we got our three points, and I thank my players for that. I know they are very tired after so many games, we conceded first, but we caught up and got the win.

“The three points are the most important thing now. If we play very well and then fail to get the three points, there is no point in that, but of course we want to play very well and win.

“We are Home United, and we should show more good performances like this one. It’s up to me to work hard with the players so that we can get people to see Home United are a good side.”

Lee was particularly grateful to have Japanese defender Kenji Arai back on the field again, after the 33-year-old opted to postpone his surgery appointment for a knee ligament problem.

“Kenji suddenly came to me and said he won’t get his operation done so quickly,” he revealed.

“I know he has a lot of pain in his knee, even though he tells me he has no pain. He wants to play, so I let him play, but I don’t want to push him if he can still feel that big pain.

“We gave away big presents to Chonburi when Kenji didn’t play, but he’s decided he wants to help the team. He was supposed to have his operation this week, so now he is trying to find a new date.”

Young Lions coach Robin Chitrakar was upset in defeat, even as he admitted his charges were outplayed by Home.

“To come here and take a lead, definitely it’s good, but it’s not easy to hang on to it,” he said.

“We played against a quality side, definitely. We wanted to press even further after taking the lead, but we were caught by surprise and never settled down after that.

“I can’t say whether 3-1 was a fair margin or not, but for me, we don’t like losing, and that’s the most important thing. When we come here, we want to collect points, definitely; otherwise we will be complacent about losing, which for me is not right.”

Article taken from sleague.com, written by Tam Cheong Yan

CYL Line up:
Syazwan Buhari, Al-Qaasimy Rahman, Faritz Abdul Hameed, Sirina Camara, Sheikh Abdul Hadi, Shamil Sharif (Faris Ramli 63″), Aqhari Abdullah, Benjamin Lee, Neil Vanu (Fazli Ayob 55″), Sherif El-Masri, Jonathan Toto (Syafiq Zainal 79″)

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