HOME AND DRY – 5-1 OVER THE SUPER REDS

Posting on behalf of my bro Daniel. Man, I can almost see the match going on in front of me as I read his article. Way to go Daniel. I'm trying to upload some photos of the match!

Also see pre-match review "HUFC vs Korean Super Reads to Kick Start."

(Match review by Daniel)

Watching HUFC take on the Korean Super Reds from the gallery of the Bishan Stadium last night, one could not help but feel sorry for the inexperienced group of youngsters from north Asia. This would be the first foray into foreign soil and professional soccer for many of them, and what a hard introduction to reality it turned out to be – the 5-1 thrashing that the game produced.

If fans had been hoping to see the Super Reds produce some measure of the scintillating soccer that shot their national team to the dizzying heights of the 2002 World Cup semi-finals, how quickly their expectations would be grounded. The players looked out of sorts and shots and passes were wayward. If this team doesn’t find their feet fast, the next 32 games will be a painful eternity for them.

Perhaps the uncertainty in the squad was typified by the tentative handling of keeper Kim Ji Soo, who allowed Protectors midfielder Kone Hamed to rifle in a shot for the opener in the 3^rd min. More poor handling soon led to an early substitution with 1^st-choice keeper Im Su Dong restored to the lineup, but the damage to the confidence was done.

Through the Koreans tried to take the game to Home, their inexperience showed in the gaps that opened up in defence, and true enough, they were punished with Indra picked up a goal in the 18^th min. 10 minutes later, it was 3-0 after great footwork by Shahril Ishak saw him beat a defender before thumping the ball into the roof of the net.

The period after the interval saw a short moment of revival by the Super Reds as they played with more panache and drive. They did well till the 58^th min when Indra, marauding down the right flank, drew the attention of several defenders before slipping a pass for an unmarked Shahril to dispatch his second, and Home’s fourth of the evening.

Following that, the Protectors seemed contended to contain the Koreans, but the 67^th minute introduction of Chinese forward Qiu Li immediately upped HUFC’s attacking impetus. His aggressive display cranked up the pressure, and this eventually led to the fifth goal of the night after he curled in a sweetly-struck free-kick in the 75^th min.

But all credit to the Koreans, they never gave up the game, and the final 10 minutes belonged to them as they began stringing passes together and asking questions about the Home defence. Had they capitalized on some unexpectedly unconvincing defending by the Home backline, the score could have been much closer.

As it was, they opened their accounts with a Kim Hyun Jun penalty in the 90^th min after HUFC skipper Subramani was adjudged to have fouled a Korean player in goal. With the final whistle blown soon after that, the 5-1 score would serve as a most auspicious start to the 2007 season for the Protectors as they begin their long journey towards making amends for what had been a poor 2006 season by the club’s high standards.

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