Author name: Eddy Hirono

It’s matchday later today, and our boys are gonna be up for revenge against Balestier Khalsa (or at least I hope so). The older readers may recognise the reference made in the title of this post, and may be wondering what exactly I am referring to. Well, if you look at our last 5 games against Balestier Khalsa, you will see four easy wins – 4-1, 4-0, 6-1, and 4-0. Then came the “funeral”. On 2 October, a rainy night when the Singapore Grand Prix also took place, Sailors title hopes were effectively extinguished as we needed at least a draw to keep pace with fellow title challengers Albirex Niigata (S), but we managed to throw away a 2-0 lead to end up losing 5-3. So what happened? The Sailors were dominating play and were very comfortable. Song Ui Yong had a couple of brilliant goals, and even though at half-time the score was 2-1, I don’t think too many people would have bet on Balestier ending the night as winners. But then, the rain came. And just as it had a huge impact on proceedings in Marina Bay in the Grand Prix, the rain had a similarly big impact on the game in Toa Payoh Stadium. Suddenly, visibility became poor, the ball got stuck in the mud, and play was becoming increasingly difficult. More difficult for the Sailors, who rely on nice crisp passing football to break down our opponents, than for the Tigers, who routinely go Route 1. Of course, the Tigers are also more adept at playing on this potato patch of a field. Could we just blame the rain though? I don’t think so. I felt the Sailors were way too sloppy that night, and in fact, two of the goals were scored when our players cleared the ball straight to opponents on the edge of the box. At professional level, to do it once in a game is bad enough, twice, simply remarkable regardless of conditions. I remember feeling kinda low, because I felt we were the architects of our own downfall. No matter how treacherous the conditions were, I felt our players definitely could have found more within themselves to deal with it. We just seemed to panic all the time – PTSD from our loss to Daegu in similar circumstances in Buriram? Perhaps. No More Potato Patch Tonight But hey, tonight’s game will be at Jalan Besar Stadium, so the pitch won’t be a factor anymore. Our boys will have to perform. Same long-term injuries remain out I suppose, so we still won’t have Mamat, Pedro Henrique, Amiruldin Asraf. Maxime Lestienne returns from suspension, while hopefully Kim Shin-Wook finds his scoring boots again so we can put Balestier to the sword and get our campaign off to a flying start. We were unconvincing against Young Lions, but perhaps it was hard to get everyone up for a dead rubber. This is when it matters – so come on you boys in blue!