Forward March
Two Men Off
Birds head coach
Dan Alstani had admitted to being concerned about Ambush F.C.'s ability after they racked up three big wins over the past week, despite not having gotten off the ground in the league yet. His worries proved justified, but in another way, as
Lim An Keng was laid out by a vicious tackle midway through the first half, and may miss the next two rounds. He had at least scored before that, as the hosts' combativeness left them with just nine men at the end, with a single goal to show for their pains.
There had been some hints as to the Ambush approach, from how winger Lin Kum Tian had been sent off last weekend, in their 0-4 loss at Marine Parade Kings. Lin's place was taken by veteran Jimmy Pham with Han Rong Yeng shifting to the right, not that it saved Pham from the same fate either. The latest competitive meeting had actually ended 3-1 to Ambush F.C. here some two years back, with their two-goal hero of that day Mahmoud El Omda making his return.
As for Grilled, a number of regulars such as Gandhik Chitre, Brian Reddy, Ha Qicai and Raul Himadas had departed since then, but it was not evident that this was an inferior lineup. There were two notable absences with
Johann Schwietzer rested as a precaution and
Chia Kwang Tse suspended, but Alstani had backups, with
Hisham Zubari stepping in at the back.
Wu Ping De was the other natural replacement, given his incredible form of late.
Goals would not take long to arrive, and there were just four minutes on the clock when
Chad Thach floated a lob past Chiang Pin Xin from the right side. It didn't even seem like a shot when it left his leg, only to drift straight into the far top corner. The lead lasted but two minutes, however, as
Hisham Zubari appeared to have forgotten that he was the last man. Former national youth defender Mohammed Husni Tahir had stayed up, and made the most of it with an incisive spurt towards Liew Qiang Ze's final ball.
That was the high point of the home team's day, as Grilled's practised attacking system began to make its imprint. The constant movement told in the fourteenth minute with
Mohd Marzuki Khairul's supporting run from central midfield picked up by
Hwang Teck Fu, who racked up another assist five minutes later for
Lim An Keng, soon after Kiichi Kida's fall inside the Grilled box had gotten him booked for simulation.
Luxembourg referee Jonathan Auriac's decision on Kiichi did not make him popular amongst the Ambush supporters, and he would shortly afterwards become a public enemy in Clementi.
Lim An Keng had been very active in attack, with Li Su Yi only barely clearing his grounder 24 minutes in, and Lim would last just two more minutes before Kee Kok Hui's high tackle caught him smack on his right knee. That was a straight red by definition, but many of the home fans didn't see it that way, and whistled Auriac even as Lim was stretchered off with his right leg immobilized.
This did allow
Mason Glendinning his first league appearance of the season, though as with
Kendell El Khateeb recently, it was quickly clear why he had not yet taken the step up into regular rotation. Kiichi Kida had him well under control for the rest of the game, and certainly until half-time, as Grilled struggled to operate under Ambush F.C.'s withering press at times.
The second half brought more breathing space as the hosts were unable to keep their rhythm up indefinitely, and Grilled would find some success mixing it up on the wings.
Phillip Nagata had been instructed to play narrow, and his breakthrough in the 56th minute came after cutting to the outside of a canny Jimmy Pham. Mahmoud El Omda committed too early to a challenge, leaving Nagata with multiple options, out of which he picked
Mohd Marzuki Khairul in the middle of the box for 4-1.
Grilled Birds kept on chugging, bolstered by their man advantage, which had
Chad Thach pull off the next big chance of note some 65 minutes in, lived up to by Chiang Pin Xin's diving save at full stretch. The hosts were really struggling to keep up now, and it only got worse for them when Pham elbowed a turning
Ananda Hettiarachchi from behind, which got him a straight red - and more booing for Auriac.
With their captain now off, Liew Qiang Ze had to take over the armband, and Ambush F.C. would commit totally to defence - which perhaps helped them in keeping the scoreline down. Ananda's opportunistic potshot wasn't far away in the 73rd minute, whilst
Chad Thach volleyed what would be the last goal home soon after. Alstani would then expend his remaining subs right before the end, which had
Zaini Zainuddin Junaidi and
Damian Hutter rewarded with appearances.
