December 2023

As I took the Grab to the stadium for this game (didn’t drive because I knew there would definitely be drinks after), I have to be honest – my thoughts weren’t about how exciting this Champions League game was. It wasn’t about how our Sailors could potentially win and achieve a 9-point finish which would have seen them go down in history as the best Singaporean team. The dominant thought in my head was simply – “Finally, the season is ending”. And I suspect that might have been the feeling for some of our players and staff as well. I don’t mean that in a harsh way by the way – it’s just human nature I guess. Let’s dive right into some of my post-match thoughts. Nothing to Fight For You’ve seen it before in the English Premier League and any other league involving relegation. For one whole year, there are teams that fly high in the league, playing swashbuckling attacking football and taking on all comers. At the end of the season though – they’ve sewn up 2nd spot or 3rd spot or 4th spot or whatever they needed to sew up, and suddenly they come up against teams fighting against relegation. And they look like a completely different team. That’s what our Sailors looked like on Wednesday. In our Champions League campaign, we’ve seen us being defensively quite solid in our 5-at-the-back formation. It probably came at the expense of some attacking creativity up front, but I would never say we looked ragged at the back. We looked very ragged at the back in this game though. I don’t quite know what it was, but I felt the whole game we looked lethargic and in attack, just couldn’t find that little bit extra to break down our opponents. In defence, I think we were not helped by Anu not being on the pitch, as we failed to close down our opponents as quickly as I think we should have. In the first 10 minutes Kitchee already had 3 shots on target. Zharfan did well to keep the score at 0-0, and we really should have heeded our warnings, but unfortunately, in the 11th minute, Chris van Huizen scored the best header he will ever score. The Crucial First Goal At the wrong end. All I can say is “shit happens” for Chris’s contribution to this calamitous own goal. However, the goal isn’t only his fault. If you watch replays of the goal, Hariss fails to track his man in midfield, allowing Fernando to play a 1-2 with him on the wing. Mamat also fails to see what’s unfolding in front of his eyes, and allows Fernando past him on the wing to whip in a cross. Of course, the cross still needed finishing, and Chris will never score an own goal like that ever again. A bullet header into the top corner which gave Zharfan no chance. Sloppy all-round even before Chris’s meaningful touch. Shit happens. Unfortunately, in this case, when shit happens in a dead rubber game where the opposition is looking to gain their first points in the group and regain some pride, it meant that we lacked the necessary grit to overcome a Kitchee team that could now sit back in numbers and pick and choose their moments to attack us. Time and again, when we lost the ball, they launched a quick counter-attack and looked dangerous. We never really looked like scoring, and even when we came close to the goal, we found the Kitchee second-choice keeper to be an obstacle. It seemed pretty clear to me that we were not gonna score all night. The Killer Second Goal It kinda hurts to continue talking about this game. But OK the article needs to be written, so I shall plug on. I think for this one, Hariss puts some pressure on Fernando, but Bailey should have stepped up and backed his ability to not let Fernando past him. Being a defender myself, I know why he sat back – he probably felt Hariss was putting enough pressure on Fernando, he probably felt that if he sat off a bit, Fernando can’t dribble past him, and he probably felt that his body shape and the area he was covering did not allow Fernando to shoot past him. Unfortunately, Fernando took a shot through his legs, and it was on target. Zharfan must have seen it quite late as well. A very soft goal to concede, just when it looked like we were putting some pressure on Kitchee. Failure to Create History I think it is slightly disappointing that we did not manage to get to 7 or 9 points from this Champions League campaign. The reason I say that is not because I really care for this record. I just think that the way we played this season in the AFC Champions League was way more impressive than last season – so it seems a pity that we were not able to at least have a tangible record to hold on to. Instead, all we have are memories of these good performances. Why do I feel this season’s 6 points is better than last season’s 7 points? Here’s some reasons – So I feel like our failure to at least match the 7 points by gaining a draw against Kitchee at home is kinda disappointing. I am convinced though, that if this match wasn’t a dead rubber match, we would no doubt have got that equaliser or winner. I will take a “glass is half-full” approach to assessing our Champions League campaign – hopefully the team will have learnt some lessons which they can apply in ACL2 next year. The Return of Wookie I am so proud of our fans for giving Wookie the welcome he deserves. The online discourse surrounding Kim Shin-Wook is divided to say the least. It sometimes gets really toxic, with people calling him a flop. Imagine calling the 3rd

It’s been 3 days since we won the Singapore Cup, but the sense of euphoria is still very much alive. I know we still have a game to go, but I think the fact that we’re already knocked out of the AFC Champions League means that this Singapore Cup final really felt like our last game. For reasons I will go into later, I don’t think the game really felt like a cup final, but I am glad we managed to come out of Jalan Besar Stadium with a Cup to show for it. Let’s dive into some quick thoughts! Atmosphere of a Cup Final The fans on both sides were on form, and I think this led to a very special atmosphere. Throughout the season, the Hools have not been at their sparkling best, owing to many of them having personal/work commitments. The move to Jalan Besar Stadium probably did not help as well. However, for this Cup final, they turned up in full force, and colour-coordinated to wear all-black, which was a real spectacle. On our side, the Crew stood loud and proud, as we belted out chant after chant, song after song, in our bid to spurs our boys on. As a long-time supporter of Home United and LCS, I think the atmosphere right now is at the highest level in recent years. Long may it continue. A picture paints a thousand words, and a video paints a bajillion words – pretty sure that’s a saying. So go check this video out. At the final whistle, the atmosphere only got louder, as the fans celebrated a first silverware since 2021. In my opinion, the Community Shield of 2022 doesn’t really count, but ok if you count it, then this is our first silverware since early 2022, still a cause for celebration. The trophy ceremony was glorious, seeing the players throw Rankovic and Forrest Li into the air was also fun. Even as fans of a rich club (in the local context), where trophies may come by a little easier than for other clubs, a cup win is always nice. However, if I were to be completely honest, the 2-0 win over Jeonbuk probably made me go a little crazier than the win over Hougang. I don’t think it’s just the quality of the opposition. It’s partly because the result never felt in doubt – there was no sense of jeopardy which would have made the win feel even sweeter. This is not to criticise Hougang by the way – I feel their circumstances rendered it almost impossible for them to compete with us. So why was there no sense of jeopardy? Hougang Didn’t Land a Punch If you watched the full game and wonder why despite Hougang looking solid at first, the result never felt in doubt, it’s because our Sailors didn’t allow them to shoot from anywhere threatening at all. Hougang registered a total of 7 shots, of which only 1 was on target. And that came in injury time in the second half, when the game had long been won already. Maksimovic, highlighted by me as a dangerman, and one to watch, did not even get one shot off. Zero. Nil. Nada. The backline marshalled him expertly, and almost came out of the game with a clean sheet. Funnily enough, Hougang scored right after the Crew did the “CAMPEONES” chant. We were ever-so-patient, waiting till the clock hit 90 minutes before doing it, and yet we still didn’t manage to ward off the jinx effect, and Hougang duly scored with their only shot on target. Shoutout to old boy Abdil Qaiyyim for the assist. The SPL website somehow credited the assist to Naoki Kuriyama – but make no mistake, it was old boy Abdil with a great flick-on header that led to Takayama heading in for the consolation. The SPL website also doesn’t think Sahil’s 2nd minute try from range was a shot, but in my opinion it was, hence the disparity between Wyscout and SPL stats when it comes to number of shots. But yeah – Hougang really didn’t generate any threat. Just look at where they were taking their shots from. And if you look at how many times they even entered our box, they came in 5 times. In comparison, we entered the Hougang penalty area 18 times, an average of once every 5 minutes. You can’t blame them for their approach – if you’ve read the preview, you’d have seen their horrendous injury list. They are truly unlucky that their key players weren’t available, or they might have been able to hurt us a bit more on the counter. If they were to try playing more expansively, I am sure our forwards would have got even more goals on the counter and the finnal would have been super lop-sided. To make things worse for them, we benefited from a stroke of luck or two too. Our First Two (Lucky) Goals I will start by saying that if the penalty kick given by the referee had been awarded against the Sailors, I’d be livid. I think it’s an incredibly harsh call. The cross comes in from van Huizen (and as we know now, everytime he crosses, something happens) – and Richairo flicks it on. It hits Kuriyama on the arm. Kuriyama barely raises his arm, and it is still near his body. He is also looking away, and I don’t feel he has enlarged his silhouette. To award a handball for this kills the game in my opinion. It is a Cup final, and a call like that instantly gave us the advantage, and sealed Hougang’s fate. I was really surprised when the VAR asked him to review the decision on the pitchside screen and he still gave the goal. But I am a Sailors fan, so I shouldn’t complain. I also will not complain about the big stroke of luck for our second goal. In the preview for this game,

We’re using this picture for the second time because – well, it was much easier than expected. Tampines have proven very very tough opponents for us in the past few seasons, but this, this was a walk in Bishan Park. Replace the pavement with red carpet, and line the carpet with drink stalls handing out free drinks and snacks to fuel your walk. Then put on a pair of Adidas Ultraboosts (not sponsored) with hotel cushions strapped on below. And then maybe have strong people carry you so you don’t even have to walk. And an army of people behind you carrying portable fans to give you a breeze from behind. Ok there we have it – it was that easy. As much as the Sailors were brilliant, Tampines really did not show up. Let’s dive into some quick thoughts I had during and after the game. Tampines Did Not Show Up Over the past few seasons, Tampines have consistently been a thorn in our side, both on and off the pitch. Who can forget the pitchside scuffle between Kim Do-Hoon and Mustafic Fahrudin, when KDH headbutted Mustafic and Mustafic choked KDH? #allhandsonneck Or the brilliant Maxime equaliser at OTH last year to cancel out Boris Kopitovic’s opening goal, closely followed by an impressive freekick from Mehmedovic – all in 5 minutes? Or our Sailors getting completely outplayed at OTH early this season? Or Pedro Henrique’s last-minute winning goal after the #allhandsonneck incident? I could go on forever, but as I mentioned in my preview, we were neck and neck this season. We each had 1 win over the other, and 2 draws. It doesn’t get closer than that. Last season saw us beat them 3 times out of 4, but even then it was seldom comfortable. I spoke with Tampines fans who mentioned that fatigue may have been a factor. I am not so sure about that because I think if anything, our Sailors have had far more minutes in their legs, and travel too, considering our AFC Champions League fixtures. Perhaps our gruelling schedule has ironically helped us to manage the stresses of playing twice in three days better? If I could hazard a guess at another factor leading to Tampines’s lacklustre performances, I’d probably mention the mental blow of going behind so early in the game, which forced Tampines to come out and play. Not only did that perhaps bring down their morale a little, it also meant that we could keep on hitting them on the counter. How early was the goal you ask? 77 Seconds + Let’s Talk About Anu 77 seconds is all it took for us to open up their backline. Anu did well to dispossess our old boy Faris in midfield and play a nice pass to Diego Lopes. Diego’s run through the heart of the Tampines defence opened them up and allowed him to slip the ball into the path of Richairo who finished under the body of Syazwan. Anu’s part in this goal should be highlighted. It was really good work for him to win the ball, but the key to the goal was him quickly playing the ball forward. This was a consistent theme for him and Hariss all afternoon. Every opportunity they got after taking the ball from their opponent, they tried to move it forward quickly or switch it, to really stretch Tampines and hit them on the counter. It is really no wonder that Tampines stopped making adventurous runs after a while – they were worried about the Sailors’ threat on the counter. On the contrary, Anu and Hariss always looking to play the ball forward, and playing it accurately meant that the forwards could be bolder in their runs because they smelt blood each time the ball was won in midfield. The semi-final games have been good for Anu. Two good performances, and a goal to go along with it, that is the best way to reply to the haters who unfairly pinned the loss to Bangkok solely on his shoulders, and who repeatedly call for him to be replaced by other midfielders in the league. Let’s hope he puts in another commanding performance in the final! It Really Should Have Been More 3-0 is a commanding scoreline to win by, but I think even the most hardened Tampines Rovers fan will admit that it really should have been more. 9 minutes in, Nathan Mao’s shot right in front of goal from a Maxime pull-back was deflected wide. On 14 minutes, Anu’s lofted through-pass puts Richi in on goal, but he smashes the shot straight at Syazwan. 19 minutes in, Maxime really tests Syazwan, who does superbly to save from him. On 21 minutes, a Maxime corner kick makes its way to Richi near the penalty spot but he skies it. On 39 minutes, a big switch by Lionel Tan leads to some superb interplay involving Maxime, Diego, and Richi, but ends with Diego’s shot being deflected wide. 54 minutes, another fantastic save from Syazwan after a 1-2 from Maxime and Diego. 55 minutes in, a Richairo cutback is somehow missed right in front of goal by Maxime on his favoured foot. Two observations. First, that’s 7 very presentable opportunities. On another day, the scoreline could have been very ugly. Second, it is a rare day that Maxime is involved in so much but ends up with only 1 goal contribution – his assist for Diego for our 3rd goal. In fact, Maxime last scored in October, against Kitchee from the penalty spot. Since then, he has played in 7 games and not scored a goal – definitely his longest streak without scoring this season. If you are looking at non-penalty goals, his last goals came in August, against Hougang. That makes it 11 games without a non-penalty goal for our top-scorer this season. That’s why despite the result being super-secure, I was hoping he would score a goal to break this rather unfortunate