May 2025

2-0 up and cruising – what happened after that? It was an uncharacteristically sloppy performance from our Sailors as we threw away 3 points to make the title race unnecessarily tense. In any other season, this wouldn’t seem like so much of a waste, as I think we should be able to win 2 out of our last 3 games (even if BG Tampines wins every remaining one of their matches). However, in a season where we have our sights set on securing the biggest trophy in our history (the ACL2), this slip has meant that we cannot now turn 100% of our focus to that competition. We must still bounce back and get the wins against Tanjong Pagar United, and Balestier Khalsa. We’ve made it unnecessarily difficult for ourselves. Let’s dive into some quick post-match thoughts. Tired Bodies, Tired Minds Sunday’s game was the 51st match of our campaign. Geylang International unsurprisingly looked a lot fresher, given the far fewer games because of a lack of continental competition for them, and the one extra day of rest. Coach Ranko mentioned in the post-match interview that the players seemed to lack intensity, and that’s where I felt we should have switched things up a little. I remember thinking in the second half, when both Hami and Rui were on yellow cards – could Anu not have come on and added some fresh legs in midfield? Or Lionel Tan in defence, so that Hariss could push up into midfield? In the build-up to Geylang’s winning goal, Rui Pires was clearly running on fumes – he couldn’t sprint anymore to try to put pressure on Vincent Bezecourt. I feel like had Anu been there, he would have been able and willing to chop Bezecourt down at the expense of a yellow card. Rui and Hami couldn’t do that. They weren’t just tired with a lot of minutes on them, they were also walking a disciplinary tightrope. One stray tackle would have seen them miss out on the next game, and that wouldn’t be great considering we are already thin on central midfield options after Song’s injury and Adam Swandi’s retirement. Chris van Huizen is also one who has played quite a bit of football recently, and I wonder why Akram Azman is seeing so little game time, especially when he looked promising in his first few games. We even have Mamat back from injury, so the options are there at rightback, without needing to run the same players into the ground all the time. I spoke with Bailey after the game, and he mentioned that players will always want to play, every single game, every single minute. And I guess that’s why I think Coach Ranko has to be the one to shuffle his pack. We’re also reaching the business end of the season so I think there is some benefit to keeping our fringe players match-fit and sharp as well – you never know when they might have to come in and fill a spot in very important games. The Positives Maxime with 2 glorious assists. A disguised reverse pass into the feet of Lennart Thy, and a trademark left-footed cross onto the head of Shawal Anuar, led to our first 2 goals. After a run of games where he didn’t register goal contributions, he got one last game, and now two. Logic dictates that he will get three goal contributions next game eh? Diogo Costa had yet another game where he really put on a show. He dazzled the crowd with his skill and footwork, and always looked dangerous down the left. The team kept trying, even when it looked like we were running out of ideas. That’s about it. Touchline Shenanigans If you watched the Bailey interview, you will also see that I asked him about Hasrin Jailani putting a second ball on the pitch when we were trying our best to take a quick free-kick. Bailey was philosophical about it – graciously stating that we would have done the same, and have done the same in the past. Erm, no we haven’t. And while I think players have definitely wasted time before, faking injury and all that, I don’t remember many coaches interfering with the game like that. And when they do, they get called out for it. So I’mma say what Bailey can’t say on camera. Hasrin, that was disgraceful and pretty unbecoming of a coach. Go see it for yourself. Hasrin rolled back the years to his playing days and backheeled the ball back onto the pitch to delay the restart. While that probably didn’t have any effect on the game, it is not the first time that Hasrin has been involved in some touchline trouble. You’ll remember his middle finger aimed at the Sailors bench the last time we played Geylang. He was also involved in some touchline drama, along with Coach Noh Alam Shah in a match against BG Tampines a couple of years ago when he was at Tanjong Pagar United. While I think Bailey was right to say that Geylang was just doing their job, I wonder if the officials should have taken a dimmer view of such conduct. Delaying the start of play by a team official is not only a bookable offence – you can actually be sent off for that. In this game, Geylang had already received 4 yellow cards, so if Hasrin had received a yellow too, Geylang would actually have been on the end of a monetary fine. Teams are always gonna wanna gain an advantage here and there. That’s to be expected – however our officials should also be able to deter such conduct by meting out the right punishments. Conclusion I know Bailey didn’t blame the lack of rotation, but I stand by my view. Coach Ranko himself admitted it when he said there was a lack of intensity. We have a deep squad and we should trust the quality of our reserves a

In the 49th minute of the game, Ryu Hardy put in a late challenge on Song after he passed the ball. It went unpunished as the referee played advantage. That was part 1. Part 2 then saw Ryu Hardy once again go in from behind to challenge Song, who was caught on his blind side. This time, Song unfortunately was injured by the challenge, and he spent a long time on the floor with the physios and the doctor on standby. It looked a concerning injury, and he was stretchered off with his neck in a supportive brace. Fingers crossed for him. Let’s dive into some thoughts on the incident, and also the rest of the match. The Song Injury It is debatable whether it was a foul or not, and I think the referee cannot be faulted on both occasions Ryu Hardy challenged Song. My opinion was that it was a fair, but hard challenge. Ryu came in to win the ball and had his eyes fixed on the ball, and inadvertently left his shoulder and arm in during the challenge. I did want to mention one thing that viewers from home might not have seen. I have since tried to watch the replays on Youtube and unfortunately those replays only support part of what I am gonna say next about Ryu Hardy. But here goes anyway. I don’t know Ryu Hardy personally and I don’t know what he is like in person, but I found some of his conduct on the pitch after injuring Song to be very troubling. First, he would know that he had a physical aerial challenge with Song, and Song came off worse. His immediate reaction was to shrug his shoulders – as if he felt that Song had exaggerated his injury. You can see his immediate reaction for yourself. This part wasn’t the worst. I guess he might not have immediately realised the severity of the injury. However, in the minutes after when first the physios, and then the doctor came onto the pitch, I think it became clear to everyone that this was a serious head injury. To my surprise, I saw Ryu Hardy laughing and smiling throughout this time that Song was receiving treatment. Now, I don’t know for sure what his mindset was then, but you compare that with Amir Syafiz, who immediately looked concerned, and stayed around to check on Song’s progress, and you perhaps get a peek into the respective characters of the people involved. I am not usually one to wish injury on players, but I must admit that at one point, seeing Ryu laughing at Song lying prone on the floor like that, made me hope that Ryu Hardy gets his own injury one day so that his opponent can walk away calmly and laugh at him too. However, I accept that is a horrible thought and I take it back. All I hope for is a bit of compassion from players. Both sides give their best and fight hard for their team – but when accidents happen, just be a decent human being la. It’s not hard. As for Song’s injury, let’s hope it’s not too serious and he comes back to the team asap. Return to the Scoresheet for Maxime Lestienne After discussing this very topic in the preview article, it is perhaps timely that Maxime finally got back on the scoresheet. His accurate freekick in the 2nd half made the scoreline safe, and ensured that we pick up a second routine win in a week. He was also dangerous throughout, and aside from his goal, he tested the keeper, hit the post, and created chances for Shawal. It was not quite Maxime back to his best, but he’s getting there. Someone who is very much at his best though, is Bart Ramselaar. Super Bart Ramselaar I don’t quite know what is more impressive, Bart Ramselaar’s goal or his assist. The goal was brilliantly constructed and as much as Bart’s technique was brilliant, Diogo Costa’s part in the goal was important as well. First, he flicked it round the corner first time for Bart and the quick interplay set Bart on the path to goal. However, what Diogo did next was crucial. He burst forward past Bart and into the box, and for just one split-second, on-loan defender Bill Mamadou took a step to the right to track Diogo Costa’s run. That little bit of space was all Bart needed, and he let fly, hitting the ball into the top corner. It was reminiscent of his goal against Sydney FC, and in the second half of the season, Bart Ramselaar has really come to life. In the league, he is now on 10 goals and 9 assists, registering 1.26 goal contributions per 90 minutes. This compares favourably to Maxime’s 1.46, and Shawal’s 1.39. Lennart leads the way with 1.65. Considering his slow-ish start to the season, Bart seems to have sparked into life at the best time. Let’s hope this form continues untl the end of the season as we continue our quest for league and cup(s) glory. Conclusion Yet another three points, and we move yet closer to the title. It was as routine as a win gets, and despite Young Lions’ equaliser, the win never felt in doubt. An 11-point gap could be closed back to 8 again if BG Tampines beats Hougang tonight. So… come on Hougang, we’ll all be behind you. Till this Sunday’s game against Geylang! Written by Eddy Hirono If you’d like to support the work we do here at SailorFanTalk, you may want to visit https://ko-fi.com/sailorfantalk and leave us a tip!