Wednesday, December 25, 2013

IHG Soccer (M) Prelims by Sean Lim

Hall 2 vs Hall 13
WIN 5-0
                                                                                                                                                                   
Hall 2                     Vinoth 39, Farhan 40+1, Brendan 58, 74, Billy 78 (P)
Hall 13
                                                                                                                                                                   
Tuesday, 24 December 2013

ST WILFRID’S SPORTS COMPLEX – In the end, it was a relatively straightforward win for Hall 2. They made neat work of their inexperienced opponents, to the extent sometimes we wonder if the “mercy rule” should be introduced to avoid instances such as these.

There was a makeshift look to this Hall 2 side, a consequence of both the graduation of senior players as well as the absence of key players. Long-time stalwarts of the team such as ex-Hall President Teo Yu Hao and ex-captain Chai Ming Long have left the Hall, while Tan Yong Geng and Christopher Gan missed out on this one.

Hall 2 lined up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with the surprise deployment of Brendan Liang at centre-back, probably to give a relatively inexperienced backline some much-needed tactical nous. Another surprise inclusion was that of Nicholas Tai at left-wing, perhaps hoping that the chemistry with his loomie, the makeshift left-back Arnold Wee, might deliver the goods. Billy Wong lined up in the hole behind the lone striker Farhan, while elsewhere there were debuts for Dalston Leong and Blven Chan.

Hall 13 on the other hand lined up in a Mourinho-esque 4-3-3, with their midfield triangle sitting very deep. The end result of this was the lack of space in midfield, with Billy largely anonymous in the first quarter as he was starved of space he needs to thrive; it was not uncommon to see Billy completely surrounded by Hall 13’s midfield trio, unable to affect the play in any way other than set-pieces.

Hall 2’s main avenue of attack in the first half largely involved playing balls behind Hall 13’s left-back for right winger Terence Cheng to exploit the left-back’s lack of pace. It was a good strategy, taking in account the high positioning of Hall 13’s left-winger, the narrowness and high line of the defence, as well as their midfield’s determination to deprive Billy of any space at all. This left their left-back isolated against Terence, who was able to send in a couple of crosses into the box, but they were all either overhit or comfortably cleared by the Hall 13 defence, with Farhan, Billy and Nic Tai not providing much of an aerial presence in the box.

The unexpected injury suffered by Nic Tai in the 13th minute put a premature end to his loomie partnership with Arnold, the duo enjoying solid, if unremarkable, games. The introduction of Vinoth in Nic Tai’s place gave Hall 2 an extra dimension in attack, providing both directness on the left wing and an aerial presence in the box. The way he would start out wide, receiving the ball from deep before either driving infield towards goal or down the touchline was reminiscent of Balotelli in his Manchester City days.


Before the first goals arrived however, Hall 2 was exerting pressure with no real danger. Terence’s crosses, Billy’s corners and freekicks all contributed to the feel that Hall 2 was in control, but to call it a siege would be overstating the case; other than a Billy freekick in the 16th minute and a Billy cross that left the Hall 13 keeper flapping at thin air, he was largely unbothered.

Vinoth’s influence on the game finally told in the 39th minute. 2 minutes before, he had cut in from the left to fire a shot that flashed just wide. Lesson not learnt, Farhan, who was working hard to run the channels and occupy both centre-backs, had a shot on the turn that ricocheted off the crossbar. The resultant scramble outside the penalty area eventually found Vinoth completely free in the box for an easy sidefoot home.


Hall 13’s pressing and compactness up till the 30 minute mark was a crucial factor in keeping Hall 2 at bay. Such incessant pressing, however, would eventually take its toll, and as they tired towards halftime, space started to appear; spaces that Billy would soon exploit.

Billy’s positioning throughout the game was very interesting. Early on, he was crowded of space in the middle of the park, thus he resorted to either floating towards the flanks to create overloads and send crosses in, or hovering around Farhan waiting for the second ball to drop, akin to a second striker. As Hall 13’s pressing started to drop, however, Billy became more involved in the game as he dropped deeper and deeper into spaces where the Hall 13 midfield was reluctant to follow him.

One such instance led to the 2nd goal in the 41st minute. Receiving the ball deep on the left, Billy drilled an angled crossfield ball that Scholes would have been proud of into the inside-right channel for Farhan to run onto. With the Hall 13 backline caught flatfooted, Farhan slotted home to give Hall 2 a 2-0 lead at halftime.


From then on this became Hall 2’s main mode of attack, and everything good about Hall 2 flowed through Billy, a sharp contrast to his performance for large parts of the first half. Having said so, a contributory factor towards Hall 13’s fatigue was Hall 2’s ability to retain the ball and recycle possession, denying Hall 13 the chance to rest on the ball.

The overall technical superiority that the Hall 2 backline and midfield duo enjoyed was at times painfully obvious. Sathiya occasionally dropped into the backline to provide a passing option for Kenneth Gan and Brendan Liang, reliving the pressure on the Hall 2 backline. Dalston played slightly further ahead, his passing neat and crisp, keeping the play going. Arnold and Blven just did what they were supposed to do, staying back, keeping it simple.

Having ran himself into the ground during the first half, Terence’s influence on the game started to fade, just as Billy’s was growing by the minute. No matter, the job was done. 29th President Parthiban came on for Terence, prompting a tactical reshuffle for Hall 2. Parthi slotted in at centre-back alongside Captain Kenneth, Brendan moved all the way to centre-forward, Farhan dropping slightly deeper, while Billy took over Terence’s place on the right. Hall 2 morphed into a lopsided 4-4-2; Vinoth continued to stay high and wide, and while Billy was the notional right-winger, he was really just moving wherever that allowed him to spray balls towards the 3 forwards on his left.

Brendan’s change of position was to prove the pivotal change for the 2nd half, as he played a role in the next 3 goals. He scored the first off a Billy inswinger from the left, with the Hall 13 defence completely lost at sea. 

His next was a work of art. Kenneth spotted the run of Brendan and lofted a ball over the Hall 13 defence, while Brendan did superbly to not only beat the offside trap but to lob the goalkeeper from 25m out. He then showed that his link-up play was up-to-scratch as well, playing the through ball that led to Billy’s penalty, which he converted with aplomb for Hall 2’s 5th goal.


Billy’s crowding out in the first half and Brendan’s deployment as centre-back contributed to Hall 2’s relatively muted start. However, once Hall 13 started to tire, Billy promptly grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck, and was ably supported by Brendan in the 2nd half. With Christopher and Yong Geng to return for the next games, a full-strength Hall 2 side is a terrifying proposition for anyone to face.

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