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Scorers (assists)
Imran (Helmi)
Man Of The Match
Shahril (9) - defensive colossus, a vital player in the heart of defence
Imran (5) - solid performance
Azmi (1) - mainstay of ever-changing backline throughout the game, ever-present in past 3 games of unbeaten run
Wilson (1) - decent handling and shot stopping. good improvements!
Yellow card:
-
Wilson (GK)
Rashid - Shahril - Azmi - Fazli
Kelvin - Azman - Akim - Shafi
Helmi
Imran
Subs:
Mubarak
Firdaus Masdar
Karim
Amin (d)
Joharie
Our team in D2D league
Rest of league results
When Kambing FC play two games in the next two weeks, we would have edged towards a monumental piece of history, as it means we would have played a magical 100th game since we were founded on 5 January 2008.
Before that, earlier today, we had written a small but still significant chapter in that history with our 3rd successive win in the D2D league. A casual remark after the game begged the question "Is this (3 wins in a row) a record for Kambing FC in the league?". Being the curious person I am, my mind instantly thought 'no' but I took this as a chance to pore through our short records. In our 3rd season now, we had in fact re-written this record following last week's game when we won two in a row in a league. Up till now, we had, mostly between friendly matches, and always in our league games in the previous two seasons, been reduced to a solitary win for a run of games before winning again.
This was also our finest run of consecutive games won since we won two in a row from 7 to 14 February 2010. A more impressive similar achievement before that was when we four in a row way back from 18 January to 8 February 2009. Playing in a league is a different ball game however. That is what makes this record a little special as we have generally struggled to win games in the league.
On a freshly-cut, returfed grass pitch at Mayflower Secondary School, Imran's solitary goal was enough to ensure our perfect start to the season so far; winning our first three league games at the start of a season is also a record. We could have easily led by 6 goals in the first half and should have cruise to victory. However, an indifferent second half performance meant we were holding on to secure another hard-fought victory.
Apart from Helmi, in place of Omar, we fielded an unchanged line-up from last week. We also welcomed back Amin (d) and Joharie who made their first appearances this season from the bench and did well when called upon.
Yet again, we scored an early goal. A Mubarak throw-in from the right flank was thrown to Kelvin deep in opponents' territory near the byline. Our winger shrugged off his marker and played in Helmi inside the penalty box, who cut back a pass for Imran. Our newly-installed striker maintained superb composure to drag the ball with quick feet from his right to left despite having two defenders close by and was suddenly left unmarked. The bewildered defenders could then only look on as Imran unleashed a fierce left-foot shot at the GK's near post. The GK got his hands to the ball but found it too hot to handle as it crept into the net.
We began to dominate and Fazli's long throw-ins were a useful weapon yet again. I was guilty of spurning our next best chance of the game when unmarked from close range at the far post, his throw eluded everyone in the penalty box but me. However, I could only head his throw straight at the GK who made a reflex save to concede a corner. Later, a good build-up from the left also saw us in numbers inside the opponents' penalty box later on and Joharie was all alone on the right. The loose ball was perfectly squared across the box for him towards the edge of the box but he could only let fly and high over the bar. From Rashid's menacing corner, Imran just headed over the bar.
Gamesmanship, due to a series of niggling fouls from both teams, somewhat disrupted the flow of the game and threatened to spiral out of control. Two off-the-ball incidents involving our players being fouled had us in uproar as the yellow card was finally shown to their player. However, we looked comfortable and generally had no trouble protecting a slender lead. There was the usual awkward moments when we defend. However, we are making a marked improvement cutting out those moments early. Wilson was also a safe pair of hands in goal although he was not severely tested.
The gamesmanship continued after the half-time break. We gave it back as good as we got. Helmi's free-kick almost found Shafi for arguably the best chance in that half. Shafi, not renowned for his header, headed the ball not far from goal. We had a few more set-pieces from such positions and corners too. However, we did not quite utilize the healthy height in the team, another tweak of the team for this season, to our advantage. Still, we hope to be more clinical from dead-ball situations in future games.
Shafi was also involved in our best play of the day. After retaining possession on the left flank, a crossfield pass found Shafi on the right. To the amazement of almost everyone except himself, he unbelievably managed to control the ball before it went out of play for a throw-in and broke away to dribble towards the opponents' defence. Playing a one-two with Imran, he then set me up. My meek shot did not do justice to his enterprising play.
As the game wore on, we found ourselves desperately clinging on as fatigue sets in under the increasingly hot weather. Our opponents pressed for an equalizer and soon, we were firmly encamped in our own half. However, Shahril and co. were ruling the roost impressively and kept out all and sundry. The washing machine could have been thrown at our goal but such was our defence's resiliency, exemplified by Shahril's decisive, convincing interceptions and aerial dominance, that a clean sheet was truly deserved. Shahril would later be replaced by Imran due to injury but that only proved the strength in depth of the team as we closed out the game with a narrow win.
The back-to-back clean sheets is also a first for us in the league and only our second such record since November 2008. I am pleased that Wilson was in goal to savor this record as well.
We performed strongly in the first half and for a part of the second half against a hardworking team. Unfortunately, we did not make it easy for ourselves by spurning chances after taking the lead, especially in the first half. I, for one, am relieved the team was not punished for the header that should have been a goal. Gamesmanship was perhaps the order of the day but thankfully, it did not ruin a hard day for both teams seeking only to play football. We found ourselves under pressure later on, and where we would have normally crumbled, I was glad that we coped fantastically well with it.
The basic spine of the team has started to take shape with Imran, two goals in three games so far, and Shahril, overseeing back-to-back clean sheets, becoming influential players in their respective positions. It is also heartening to see that our good performances so far have come from a core group of players who were involved in the initial set-up when we first joined the league. The definition of 'good' in our performances is debatable but there is definitely a sense of strong team spirit and a willingness to progress together as a group based on our three matches so far. Let's keep the games rolling, the wins coming, the style going and the team playing!
Akim
Rest of league results
When Kambing FC play two games in the next two weeks, we would have edged towards a monumental piece of history, as it means we would have played a magical 100th game since we were founded on 5 January 2008.
Before that, earlier today, we had written a small but still significant chapter in that history with our 3rd successive win in the D2D league. A casual remark after the game begged the question "Is this (3 wins in a row) a record for Kambing FC in the league?". Being the curious person I am, my mind instantly thought 'no' but I took this as a chance to pore through our short records. In our 3rd season now, we had in fact re-written this record following last week's game when we won two in a row in a league. Up till now, we had, mostly between friendly matches, and always in our league games in the previous two seasons, been reduced to a solitary win for a run of games before winning again.
This was also our finest run of consecutive games won since we won two in a row from 7 to 14 February 2010. A more impressive similar achievement before that was when we four in a row way back from 18 January to 8 February 2009. Playing in a league is a different ball game however. That is what makes this record a little special as we have generally struggled to win games in the league.
On a freshly-cut, returfed grass pitch at Mayflower Secondary School, Imran's solitary goal was enough to ensure our perfect start to the season so far; winning our first three league games at the start of a season is also a record. We could have easily led by 6 goals in the first half and should have cruise to victory. However, an indifferent second half performance meant we were holding on to secure another hard-fought victory.
Apart from Helmi, in place of Omar, we fielded an unchanged line-up from last week. We also welcomed back Amin (d) and Joharie who made their first appearances this season from the bench and did well when called upon.
Yet again, we scored an early goal. A Mubarak throw-in from the right flank was thrown to Kelvin deep in opponents' territory near the byline. Our winger shrugged off his marker and played in Helmi inside the penalty box, who cut back a pass for Imran. Our newly-installed striker maintained superb composure to drag the ball with quick feet from his right to left despite having two defenders close by and was suddenly left unmarked. The bewildered defenders could then only look on as Imran unleashed a fierce left-foot shot at the GK's near post. The GK got his hands to the ball but found it too hot to handle as it crept into the net.
We began to dominate and Fazli's long throw-ins were a useful weapon yet again. I was guilty of spurning our next best chance of the game when unmarked from close range at the far post, his throw eluded everyone in the penalty box but me. However, I could only head his throw straight at the GK who made a reflex save to concede a corner. Later, a good build-up from the left also saw us in numbers inside the opponents' penalty box later on and Joharie was all alone on the right. The loose ball was perfectly squared across the box for him towards the edge of the box but he could only let fly and high over the bar. From Rashid's menacing corner, Imran just headed over the bar.
Gamesmanship, due to a series of niggling fouls from both teams, somewhat disrupted the flow of the game and threatened to spiral out of control. Two off-the-ball incidents involving our players being fouled had us in uproar as the yellow card was finally shown to their player. However, we looked comfortable and generally had no trouble protecting a slender lead. There was the usual awkward moments when we defend. However, we are making a marked improvement cutting out those moments early. Wilson was also a safe pair of hands in goal although he was not severely tested.
The gamesmanship continued after the half-time break. We gave it back as good as we got. Helmi's free-kick almost found Shafi for arguably the best chance in that half. Shafi, not renowned for his header, headed the ball not far from goal. We had a few more set-pieces from such positions and corners too. However, we did not quite utilize the healthy height in the team, another tweak of the team for this season, to our advantage. Still, we hope to be more clinical from dead-ball situations in future games.
Shafi was also involved in our best play of the day. After retaining possession on the left flank, a crossfield pass found Shafi on the right. To the amazement of almost everyone except himself, he unbelievably managed to control the ball before it went out of play for a throw-in and broke away to dribble towards the opponents' defence. Playing a one-two with Imran, he then set me up. My meek shot did not do justice to his enterprising play.
As the game wore on, we found ourselves desperately clinging on as fatigue sets in under the increasingly hot weather. Our opponents pressed for an equalizer and soon, we were firmly encamped in our own half. However, Shahril and co. were ruling the roost impressively and kept out all and sundry. The washing machine could have been thrown at our goal but such was our defence's resiliency, exemplified by Shahril's decisive, convincing interceptions and aerial dominance, that a clean sheet was truly deserved. Shahril would later be replaced by Imran due to injury but that only proved the strength in depth of the team as we closed out the game with a narrow win.
The back-to-back clean sheets is also a first for us in the league and only our second such record since November 2008. I am pleased that Wilson was in goal to savor this record as well.
We performed strongly in the first half and for a part of the second half against a hardworking team. Unfortunately, we did not make it easy for ourselves by spurning chances after taking the lead, especially in the first half. I, for one, am relieved the team was not punished for the header that should have been a goal. Gamesmanship was perhaps the order of the day but thankfully, it did not ruin a hard day for both teams seeking only to play football. We found ourselves under pressure later on, and where we would have normally crumbled, I was glad that we coped fantastically well with it.
The basic spine of the team has started to take shape with Imran, two goals in three games so far, and Shahril, overseeing back-to-back clean sheets, becoming influential players in their respective positions. It is also heartening to see that our good performances so far have come from a core group of players who were involved in the initial set-up when we first joined the league. The definition of 'good' in our performances is debatable but there is definitely a sense of strong team spirit and a willingness to progress together as a group based on our three matches so far. Let's keep the games rolling, the wins coming, the style going and the team playing!
Akim