CRC2014 Match Report #2: PMC vs ABC (6th April)

PMC had their 2^nd match of the CRC2014 season against a very familiar ABC side who we had already met two times within a short span of a month. Having narrowly lost to ABC1 last week for the cup fixture, PMC were indeed very determined to bounce back and looking for our first victory of the season. The commitment of the team has been apparent as 23 players had registered their availability for the game but sadly only 18 players can be fielded for each match. We were surprised to see ABC in bright orange were in the midst of their team warm-up at 2.30pm. Hai Sing Catholic Secondary is indeed our ‘home’ ground as we had had our Soccer Fellowship many times at this convenient venue during the first quarter of the year. Hence, ‘rightfully’ we were the home team for this fixture and we were not short of supporters in both Daniels who were unavailable to play, family members of Issac, Sheldon’s friend as well as some church youth.

Maurice did the sharing on the topic of ‘almost’ which can turn out to be the most disappointing word in life. He referenced the painful disappointment in Bayern Munich’s loss to Man United in the 1999 Champions League final where Bayern almost won the game only with 3 extra minutes left, and he mirrored it to the even more painful disappointment of those who almost made it to heaven after rejecting Christ persistently. Maurice challenged all to Accept that we are sinners in need of forgiveness, Believe in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins and Commit our lives to Him. 

PMC team photo before kick-off

We also welcomed back Sheldon from Japan, as well as Maurice, Issac, both Davids and Justin, who were absent from the last match. As we played very well against the same opponent last week, we had decided to keep the same starting line-up and the only 2 changes were Sheldon in for Kee Min David Lim back in goal for Joel.

PMC line-up:

David Lim

Andy - Weijie - Jacob - Eddie

Jem - Tim

Rusydi - Sheldon - JZ

Lincoln

Andy and Jeremy Sin defending in the first half

All eyes closed?

The game started with a long shot from ABC from kickoff which went wide. PMC had set their foot in defence for the first 15 minutes and the the defensive quartet held firm to clear any danger from ABC. As the game proceeded, PMC gained better possession in midfield with both Tim and Jem winning the ball hard and fair. Sheldon had constantly looked for both wings with his ranged crosses. The first chance came when ABC failed to clear a corner from Tim and it flew all the way to the other side of the post with Eddie waiting, but his timed shot was off target. David Sng came in at 30mins mark for Lincoln, who was feeling some slight discomfort from a hard challenge from our opponents. David Sng came in and pressured the opposing defense strongly with a couple of balls being won back. Rusydi had a few long shots but were cleared by ABC. The rest of the first half continued with PMC being the more dominant side, leaving David Lim with nothing much to do in goal. The first half ended with 0-0.

Team talk was focused on the need to stop the ABC wings from running past our full-backs and the need to take our chances. Changes were made at half-time with both Issac and Sam in for Sheldon and Jem in midfield, and Damien in for Eddie at LB.

PMC 2^nd half line-up:

David Lim

Andy - Weijie - Jacob - Damien

Sam - Tim

Rusydi - JZ - Issac

David Sng

Tim attempts to win the ball back in the 2nd half

ABC player has no where to go with PMC players holding the defensive line well

The 2^nd half again started with PMC pressing for the first goal but to no avail. ABC hit us back on a counter-attack where the PMC defence could only clear the cross-in not far away from the penalty box. With none of midfielders in sight, the on-rushing ABC #3 powered it into the net by deflecting the left-hand post with David Lim being fully stretched. It was indeed a wake-up call for PMC who had not taken our chances well despite being the more dominant side. Changes were made with Yijun in for David Sng and Justin in for the hardworking Andy, and Sam dropped back to RB. The change had immediately given PMC a new dimension in attack with Yijun holding the ball well and distributed timely to both wings. Weijie was yellow-carded for a late challenge but he kept a calm head despite several ABC players had reacted to the challenge. Weijie had to come off as he felt some discomfort with his back, Maurice was the replacement. With a goal down, PMC fought even harder with both Rusydi and Issac sending in many crosses from both flanks. Our effort finally paid off when JZ received a great cross-in from Rusydi, he calmly had his first touch on the ball and finished with a clinical drive into the net. PMC players came in to congratulate JZ with great excitement. Knowing we were on level terms, PMC pressured the opponents even harder during the last 8 minutes. It was again JZ receiving a ball from Rusydi and he evaded 3 ABC defenders but his scuffed shot was well saved by the goalie, with Justin almost tapped it in before the save was made. ABC also attempted some long balls in from deep but were easily cleared by Maurice and Jacob. PMC had their last chance when Rusydi’s cross from the right evaded the entire ABC defence but our 3 running-in attackers did not manage to provide a tap in. Eventually, the game ended with a 1-1 draw. But certainly the players had put in their best effort and we fully deserved our 1^st point of the season. The team will be playing against CBC in 2 weeks’ time. Sam closed us in prayer.

Photos courtesy of Ivena Chew.