CRC 2015 Match Report #4: #PentecostDoves vs #ChurchOfSG (26th April)

The #PentecostDoves arrived at Anderson Sec, eager to take on current champions #ChurchOfSG, boasting a number of marquee players from the NFL and seasoned CRC veterans. Nonetheless, the Doves knew that it was all about performance on match day, and brought along a great deal of confidence, and a change in tactics to cope with possible pacy wingers.

Before the start of play, #ChurchOfSG led in the singspiration and sharing and introduced professional freestyler Joshua Agteres (http://www.freestylerjosh.com/#About), who shared about his experience and faith in Jesus Christ. Joshua also entertained all the players with some freestyle tricks and of the Doves knew that he would also be very tricky on the playing field when the match ensued.

With the pre-match formalities completed, the teams engaged in their on-pitch battle, with the early exchanges clearly favouring #ChurchOfSG. Their control of the ball certainly gave them the edge as they wove good passes and attempted to trouble Maurice in goal with long shots, especially from their #7. Fortunately, most of their attempts were wide off the mark in the first 20min. The Doves had to resort hitting from the break, with Tim winning the balls and trying to weave some magic. Unfortunately, some poor defending on set pieces allowed #ChurchOfSG a significant advantage in the match. Firstly, a corner was not dealt with decisively, allowing too much space in the box for a forward to blast into the net. Following that, another corner was not cleared, allowing another player to head into goal. Suddenly being 2-0 down meant that PMC had to step up and this was done via a well worked free kick between Daniel Low and Matthew, with Matthew's low and hard cross being deflected into goal by a #ChurchOfSG player. With the score at 2-1, both sides tried to increase their advantage before halftime but it was not to be.

Both teams made changes at the half, but the most significant came from #ChurchOfSG when they brought on Joshua Agteres as their playmaker. His introduction into the match certainly had its intended impact, as his skilfulness drew players to him, allowing others to find space in the box. And this was the way in which #ChurchOfSG pulled away from the Doves, through the playmaking of Joshua, and assisting on 2 goals mid-way through the 2nd half, allowing them to take a 4-1 lead. Although the Doves stood strong and attempted various ways to get back into the match, there was just insufficient firepower up front, and the only good chance which fell to David Sng went begging when he fired wide of the post. In the final minutes, with fatigue setting in, #ChurchOfSG found another goal on the break, ending the match 5-1 in their favour.

Soccer Clinic with the TFSC kids (20 March 2015)

For this round of Soccer Clinics with the TFSC kids, we booked a different venue from our usual (Safra Tampines). We went to the UberSports futsal venue at East Coast Park! Two other volunteers, Felix Lam and Joshua Tan, from our Youth Ministry had a great time at this session too. So far, i've been with the kids for 4 sessions and it's a real joy to conduct these sessions for them. They probably know my style already; the session usually runs in this order: warm-ups and jogging > dribbling practice > shooting practice (right leg and left leg) > tournament which consists of 7-minute matches > the occasional short talk about good values > photo-taking > lunch.

The good values are always taught on the pitch during training and during the matches if we see any undesirable behaviour being displayed. I also shared with Felix and Joshua to be big brothers to these kids. Encouraging the kids during these sessions is also very important as that builds them up as a person. Teaching of good values is also done off the pitch while we wait for our next match during the tournament or also while we walk to lunch and talk during lunch. The kids were treated to Burger King after 2 hours of soccer. They thoroughly enjoyed it!

It's great when we get to see each other again after 2 months (since it's held during all the major school holidays). Working with Alvin from TFSC to plan these sessions for the kids has been a blessing to me and will continue to be a blessing as I spend more time running around with the kids. When I see familiar faces, it continues to help us form closer bonds. I was really happy to see some of them at the Good Friday Banquet (You're Special Banquet) which we recently planned for many guests. I told them that I'll see them at the next soccer clinic session in June.

CRC 2015 Match Report #3: #PentecostDoves vs #Aldersgate (19th April)

The first of 2 rescheduled CRC games occurred on Sunday, bringing the team down to St Gabriel's Secondary. As S&S has now been enforced to start on time, teams are encouraged to reach early to prepare themselves. No more delaying was allowed so as to wait for some late comers to arrive, or home team could face potential demerit points accumulation. Aldersgate led the S&S session with a short guitar worship, followed by David sharing the joy our God has in life, especially with Easter passing by not too long ago.

Couple of tweaks to the typical PMC back 4 in the line-up as suspension and unavailability meant makeshift wingbacks, as both central defensive players Sheldon and Jem Sin deputising in RB and LB respectively.

PMC Lineup:

David

Shel - Martin- Dan Chen - Jem Sin

Matthew - Malcolm - KeeMin - JZ - Rus

Jacob

Referee for this match was Steven (got his name from CRC google drive), never mind if you do not know his name, but all will recognise him as the referee with his "own opinion of how the game should be". After the coin toss between the captains, both team changed sides and AMC kick-off. As PMC was settling down into our positions on the other half, and David was getting to his position, though already in the penalty box, Steven blew for the game to begin. AMC had a quick look and saw David off his line, launch a kickoff shot straight towards goal, catching David by surprise. PMC was shell-shocked. In his defence, Steven explained that he is not obligated to check if any goalkeepers are ready, so long as both teams are in their halves and the goalkeepers are in the own penalty box. PMC hence restarted the game at the 1st minute a goal handicapped. 

At the restart, AMC came strongly at PMC, primarily down both flanks. A strong left side of Rus and Jem managed to thwart any attack down PMC's left, but AMC soon discover the right channel of Matt and Shel to be lacking in strength and speed. In the opening 15 minutes, PMC found a lot of battle in the middle and in particular, much of the action was skewed to the right side. Tournament top-scorer AMC Weixiong exploited fully the space he manage to carve out easily to execute a very well taken left-footed shot from the right channel, leaving David once again grasping for thin air at the powerful shot. PMC battle hard upfront, with Jacob, JZ and Rus hurrying AMC's backline to committing mistakes. Unfortunately, AMC defence held up well, to limit PMC's attack to afew scuff shots. With AMC seeming to start to dominate the middle of the pitch, Rus begin to drift into the middle more and JZ had to drop deeper to give AMC strong midfield a tougher fight. Unfortunately for PMC, the battle in the pitch was made harder by many of the referee's "own" reading of the game. Jacob was first into the referee's book for a fair but late tackle. AMC got their 3rd when some neat play from the right had the ball in the net again, with Weixiong involved heavily in the buildup. PMC managed to earn a penalty late in the first half after a foul on Rus and up stepped Rus to take the spotkick. His resulting placement to the right was too accurate that the post had a resounding loud applause when hit by it.

HT: AMC 3 - PMC 0.

HT changes: Wei Jie for Sheldon at rightback and Weelong replaced Jacob to play behind Zhong, pushing Zhong to the front.

PMC started the half strongly, neutralising AMC for the opening 2nd half. Weixiong switching over to the left had Jem keeping a strong eye on him for much of the opening 2nd half. No goals in the next 15 minutes with both teams limited to some potshots at each other. Matthew was next to make way for Chinkai on the right as PMC pushed forward now with nothing to lose and Kevin came for Martin, pushing Jem centrally to partner Dan. Some good combination between Chinkai, Weelong and JZ earned PMC a freekick as weelong's quick feet dazzled some late challenges. The resulting freekick into the box saw some scramble and Kevin managed to poke the ball away before a kungfu high kick from AMC defender on Kevin was surprisingly spotted by the referee and out came his whistle to point to the spot. Rus stepped up again, this time hard and low to the keepers left. Dan was subsequently changed for Joel, pushing WJ and Jem as the new centerhalf partners. AMC regained the 3 goal advantage when a loose ball was not cleared and managed to fall to the path of AMC incoming CM to put it past David. PMC had another chance to reduce the deficit when a neat ball through the middle found JZ with space all to himself, but AMC goalkeeper somehow manage to produce some form of Dudek's aura to cause the ball to bounce a little just as JZ was about to hit it, sending the resulting kick up above the bar. An injury towards the end of the game to AMC CM saw PMC giving the ball to AMC, though still in possession. AMC launched the ball back for PMC, but yet continue to press for the ball caused some confusion as to whether the ball was to be returned to PMC for sportsmenship. The ball went out and Jem took the subsequent throw back to David who launched it up the field. Unfortunately, the ball reached Weixiong who quickly played it neatly between Jem and Kevin before Jem could get back into position and the AMC striker duly claim the 5th.

FT: AMC 5 - PMC 1.

CRC 2015 Match Report #2: #PentecostDoves vs #AMKBethesda (12th April)

It took a whole month between PMC's last CRC fixture and this one due to 2 postponed matches in-between. The break seemed to have done PMC good as there was overwhelming response towards this match, requiring some head/heart-ache to select the 18 players for the match day team. There was also some apprehension on match day itself when sunny skies in the east turned to lightning/thunder when we arrived at Ang Mo Kio Secondary School. The weather still looked threatening at the start of S&S. Kevin shared from Psalm 39:4-6, reminding all players about the brevity of life. For those who did not yet know Jesus, Kevin encouraged them to explore the eternal life that Jesus offers and for those who already were Christians, the message was to treasure life and be faithful to Jesus Christ. After S&S, the referee immediately called play to start and despite the threatening weather initially, the skies cleared for beautiful conditions.

The early passages of play were dominated by AMKBC, with PMC pinned back in their own half. It was clear that AMKBC was going to use its speedy wingers to break down the PMC defence and on more than one occasion, they found their way down the flanks, but their crosses and passes were well-repelled by the PMC back four. David's handling in goal was also impeccable, leaving AMKBC without any clear-cut chances despite their majority share of possession. It was thus against the run of play that PMC took the lead. With Jacob pressing AMKBC's LB, his wayward pass across the box was met first time by Jingzhong, firing an unstoppable shot into the roof of the net, leading to mass celebrations by PMC's players, who knew that they did not deserve the early goal. AMKBC continued with the lion's share of possession from there, attempting to tiki-taka their way and using some free kicks to break-through, but to no avail. It took another quick break by PMC that led to its second goal, this time with 50-50 credit to both sides. An early ball to Malcolm saw him release Jacob with a nice through ball, which was completely missed by the AMKBC GK, allowing Jacob to pass the ball into an empty net. 2-0 up was far more than PMC could have asked for in this first half, and this lead was preserved with good defensive work by the back four as well as the DMs and Malcolm, leaving the wingers and Jacob to pressure the AMKBC back line and hit on the break.

With AMKBC feeling that they were unfortunate to be behind after the first half, it was not surprising that they started the second half with great intent to pull a goal back. A few substitutes were brought on to fulfil this. Similarly, PMC also made a change with Ernest replacing Daniel at RB. Having already settled into its shape and discipline, the second half was a lot more even in its initial stages. What was better was PMC taking a 3-0 lead, thanks to Malcolm's first time attempt on goal from long-range which caught out the AMKBC GK. At this point, AMKBC had nothing left to lose and unleashed more players forwards in order to claw their way back into the match. This day did, firstly with a shot from wide right which David could only parry, allowing the onrushing forward to push the ball into an unguarded net. This started wave after wave of AMKBC attack on the PMC goal, which the PMC players did well to repel. However, when a free kick was given up just outside the PMC box, AMKBC took full advantage to score with a wonderful direct shot, setting up a frenzied final 5 minutes of play. It took all 11 PMC players to pull together to stand firm and hold out for their first victory of CRC2015. It was also heart-warming that after the final whistle, Martin sportingly piggy-backed an injured AMKBC player off the field, earning him rave applause online, especially from his mum!

Soccer Fellowship Report (5th April)

Soccer Fellowship returned for the first time in 2015 with a massive turn out of 27 players at Ang Mo Kio Secondary School, a beautiful field. The weather was threatening from the morning, but God's faithfulness shone through like the bright sky that appeared above Ang Mo Kio Secondary just as Soccer Fellowship was about to begin. There were many new faces, most notably friends of David Lim, as well as Ted from PMC. In line with it being Easter Sunday, Kevin started the session with a devotion on the life of Jesus, and how he lived, died and was resurrected to save us from our sins, and offer an everlasting life.

Following devotion, the teams split into the DARK and LIGHT team, playing 11-a-side with rolling subs. The LIGHT team started off the match the quicker of the 2 sides and put themselves in the lead early on, with Jacob playing Jingzhong into space, who finished calmly past Maurice in goal. DARK responded quickly, with some pressure on LIGHT and the returning Damien finishing off sweetly with a left foot shot that went into goal off the bar. David in the LIGHT goal had no chance. From there, play was mostly even in the first half and it took a wonderful header from Wee Long to put DARK 2-1 up at halftime.

The second half looked to be competitive until about the halfway mark when DARK ran away with the match, with goals from Yi Jun (3) and Joel (2). LIGHT tried their best to look for goals, but play often broke down in the final third. Although LIGHT did pull one back late in the match, it was not enough to make a significant comeback. For their clinical finishing and play in the final third, DARK deserved their 7-2 victory on Easter Sunday.

7th Friendly VS PPCC (15 March)

PMC players gathered early at St Gabriel Secondary School to face last year's finalist- Pasir Panjang Christ Church (PPCC). This was intended to prepare the team for our next opponents who were  last year's champions- Church of Singapore (COS). There were slight drizzles before the start of the game that had eased the afternoon temperature. PPCC were in shortage of players as PMC had to lend them 4 players in Kevin, Ernest, Henry and Felix.

PMC line-up:

Michael

Samuel - Martin - Daniel Chen - Ming Kiat

Kee Min - Andrew

Chin Kai - Malcolm - Wee Long

Jacob

PMC started the game strongly as Kee Min and Andrew were able to boss the midfield from the start. There were nice build-up play from Ming Kiat, Andrew and Wee Long on the left. It was no surprise our first goal came from the left as an inviting cross from Wee Long was wrongly put into the net by the opposition CB. That had motivated PMC to press for the second. A neat ball was passed to Jacob who back-heeled it into the way of Malcolm and the latter made no mistake with the keeper to beat. Chin Kai should have made it 3-0 when he out-muscled the last man into collecting a through ball but his tamed shot went wide. On the other hand, PPCC tried to threaten PMC with a few long balls but were expertly cleared by our back four. With 10 more minutes to go for the first half, substitutions were made. This made an immediate impact as Joel tapped an accurate cross by Matthew into the net. The first half ended with PMC 3:0 PPCC.

PMC made a few changes to the second-half line-up:

Jacob

Samuel - Martin - Daniel Chen - Kevin

Kee Min - Andrew

Matthew - Malcolm - David Sng

Joel

Both Kevin and Henry returned to the team as a couples of PPCC players had arrived before the start of second half. More notably were the introduction of their pacy right wing #37 whose daunting runs on the right had put PMC under pressure. It required a combined effort from Kevin, Andrew and David to keep him at bay. On one occasion, a deep cross was sent in from right and was met by PPCC #31 who struck at first time. Samuel made a heroic attempt to block the shot but unfortunately, he had sprained his ankle as a result. Ming Kiat returned for the injured Samuel as the play resumed. PPCC's goal finally came when another similar cross was again met by #31 who made no mistake this time round. PMC's 4th goal came when Jacob robbed the ball from PPCC defence and released Malcolm to score for his second goal of the match. Late into the second half, Jacob scored from an 1-on-1 situation after receiving a delightful pass from Kevin. Second half ended with PMC 5:1 PPCC.

Although PPCC did not field their full strength team, it was still a morale-boosting victory for PMC. We are all set to face COS next Sunday! Jacob closed in prayer.

CRC 2015 Match Report #1: #PentecostDoves vs #BBTCEagles (8th March)

The first league game of PMC brought the team up north to the field of Naval Base Secondary School. PMC arrived early for the league game to receive our new kit for the coming season, a new replacement to our previous white with a bright yellow top. Special thanks to PMC church member Daryl Neo for sponsoring some proceeds to the kits. If any investors need information or compliance regulations assistance, http://www.handshakes.com.sg/ is the website to go to.

CRC league games main purpose is a gentle reminder for Christians to bear the cross as they play the sport and as they face crossroads in lives. The games are also to equip pre-believers with values to make the right decisions in life, especially the single most important decision in their lives. Ultimately the only thing that matters is the cross. As BESS is the "home" team, they led the opening S&S with worship and sharing. And with this being the season opener, it is timely as well for BESS to share about the Marriage at Cana from the Gospel, John 2:1-11, wherein the transformation of water into wine has been touted by many as the first miracle by Jesus.

 PMC Starting Lineup:

Maurice

Kevin - Daniel Chen - Martin - Daniel Low

Kee Min - Dominic

Jingzhong - Malcolm - Matthew

Timothy

First half started off with BESS dominating the opening minutes, as they were able to string successive passes on the narrow pitch and kept PMC to chasing shadows. It was no wonder that BESS took a quick early lead. A scrappy foul in the middle of the park allowed BESS to launch the first of their many set-pieces and threw in their giant players. The incoming freekick was badly judged by the backline and allowed 1.9m Kenneth to easily receive the ball and place it pass the helpless Maurice. PMC woke up from the goal and started to get a grip of the game and began to string some passes of her own. Much of the play was down the right channel as Dan Low, Dom, Mathew and Tim were able to combine to a couple of chances. Unfortunately, BESS keeper was rarely tested and they begin to grab a second. Another foul in the middle of the park saw BESS launch yet another freekick. Hesitation from the backline in going to meet the ball and to try and play a highline left the ball easily to fall to the BESS striker, who again got an easy route to placing the ball past Maurice. PMC chase and press harder from the restart and Tim was a constant threat bearing down on BESS defence. PMC finally got 1 back when Jingzhong's long ball was chased hard by the tireless Tim and he was first to the ball to put it past BESS goalkeeper. PMC begin to have the momentum in controlling the closing minutes of the first half but yet another foul in the middle of the park gave BESS the chance to restore the 2 goal lead. The freekick was launched to the far-post and who else, but 1.9m Kenneth is there to head the ball past Maurice.

HT: BESS 3 - PMC 1

Half-time changes were made to the backline as I came on for Martin and MingKiat came on for Kevin to shore up the defence. Midfielders and forwards were told to give their all for the opening 10 minutes before the bench players will come on to provide fresh legs.

Second half was all PMC as more of the ball players were involved. MingKiat, Dom and Jingzhong were seeing lots of the ball early in the second half as BESS find themselves now chasing shadows. 10 minutes on and no real goal threats came from either team. PMC begin to bring on the strong bench players, with Rus coming on for Matthew and brought an immediate impact. Rus's direct run and fast pace terrorised BESS leftback constantly, linking up well with the Dan low and Tim. Unfortunately, set pieces seems to now be the Achilles heels of PMC as yet another goal was conceded. A long ball launched into the box by BESS saw a tussel between Dan Low and BESS striker. Dan Low was adjudged to have tugged at the BESS striker, who in turn retaliated in elbowing Dan. This resulted in a red card for the BESS striker, a yellow card for Dan Low, and a direct freekick on the edge of the box for BESS. Despite placing a 6-man wall and players on the post, BESS smashed an unsavable freekick hard into the top right corner. More changes on for PMC now, as Sam came on for Dan Low, Andrew came on for Kee Min and Wee Long comes on for a tired Tim. With an extra man, PMC begin to dominate full possession now, launching waves after waves of attack on BESS. PMC got another back when a foul was made on the edge of BESS box. Up stepped Rus and he signal his return to the team after an operation with a well taken freekick that BESS goalkeeper can do nothing about. PMC made a final change with Felix coming on for Malcolm, so its 3 at the back, and 2 wingbacks. The last minutes saw BESS parking a bus in their own half, leaving only their other 1.9m striker up front to contain PMC's too little too late's attack.

FT: BESS 4 - PMC 2

PMC Scorers: Timothy, Rusydi

Pre-season Friendly vs ZPC (1st Mar)

PMC's last pre-season friendly was against a new team Zion Presbyterian Church (ZPC). PMC arrived on familiar ground at Hai Sing with 20 strong, all players eager to get a good run out before the start of the season. Jem Tan, Dom and MK also returned to the team for the first time this season.

PMC took control of the game from the very beginning, with a strong presence in midfield by Keemin Dom and Malcolm. The both teams started by trying to play down each other flanks. Although PMC was more dominant, chances created were not converted. PMC finally found the back of he net when ZPC players started to back off from the more confident PMC players. This gave Malcolm 2 opportunities to score in succession. Nearing the end of the first half, an unfortunate ricoshet from Sheldon's clearence fell nicely to the ZPC forward. Daniel who took the initial goal kick played him on side and the ball was calmly put past Maurice. The first half ended with PMC leading 2-1.

Substitutions were made in the second half to allow everyone to have a good run out. PMC continued to play well, showing the depth and strength of our squad. The most notable change was having Jingzhong to return to the centre-forward position, who score his first goal of the match by stealing a freekick taken short. Soon after an attack down the right flank by ZPC found the ball at the back of the net after an unfortunate own goal by Wei Jie. Even though the score was 3-2, PMC did not let up the pressure. A foul committed outside the box gave PMC a freekick which Dom but over the wall to slot it into the bottom left corner of the goal. Malcolm also scored another header from a corner by Henry sealed his hat trick, and constant pressure in front by Jingzhong allowed him to put one more past the keeper. It was an exciting game as PMC built momentum and confidence coming into the season. Final score PMC 6-2 ZPC.

Pre-season Friendly vs COA (15th Feb)

PMC's 5th pre-season friendly before the Chinese New Year break took place again at Serangoon Secondary, with opponents being the returning Church of Ascension (COA) led by Winston Tay, who had joined us as GK during last year's Alpha Cup. COA had put together a new look side mostly of young legs, to participate in this year's CrossRoad Cup and were eager to get a pre-season win under its belt. PMC was able to count on a solid core of players who turned up to put the finishing touches on their pre-season campaign.

It was a strong PMC line-up that took the field, with strength mostly in the central areas of the pitch. Jeremy Sin and Kee Min were having another fine showing in the middle of the park, shoring up the defence and winning balls with ease. On the right, Matthew Philix started off brightly, wanting to impress and find a place in the PMC team for the season. Sheldon was also making his return at RB and although slightly off the pace, was generally able to cope with the COA #10, clearly their main threat on the afternoon. Malcolm, re-joining the team after a long absence, was also impressing through winning headers, and taking a couple of long shots that narrowly missed the target. The match was fairly even, with crosses being swung in from PMC's right and some forages by Eddie (LM) and Kevin (LB) from the left. There was no real breakthrough with chances not being well taken. On COA's part, their direct approach allowed some dangerous balls to challenge the PMC back line, but the pairing of Daniel Chen and Martin stood strong. PMC's breakthrough finally came when Sheldon was fouled on the right, winning a free kick just outside the box. Timothy stepped up to whip in an accurate cross which Eddie planted firmly into goal to put PMC up 1-0. PMC had kept up its bright start in the first half of matches this pre-season. The rest of the half saw PMC assuredly keep their lead, denying COA any clear shot on goal.

With Martin and Matthew needing to leave at half-time, a couple of changes were again made to offer options during the season ahead. Sheldon took his place as CB, with Samuel at RB. Chin Kai started at RM. COA seemed a lot more intent to get back into the match at the start of the 2nd half. Their main threat was from their left wing, threatening a number of times, with the most dangerous chance when the winger found his way behind the defence, but David was so quick of his line to clear the ball from outside the box. David almost tried to dribble his way out of trouble against the winger! Before long, it was one-way traffic in PMC's favour. The combination of Timothy and Jacob as PMC's front 2 reaped the reward when Jacob flicked on a return pass to Timothy who took on the GK and fired the ball into goal. A number of changes took place after this, with Malcolm and Henry coming back on. The changes spurred PMC to charge forward and the 3rd goal was scored when Henry beat a defender on the right, played the ball to Kee, who fed Timothy through on goal. There was still some work for Timothy to do with 2 defenders on his tail, but he held them off expertly and scored his 2nd of the match. COA was completed deflated by this time and were left clueless how to get back into the match. PMC played controlled football after this, to seal its first full match pre-season win. Only the referee was able to help COA get back into the match by dubiously awarding a penalty to COA when the handball by Jeremy Sin was clearly outside the penalty box. Even COA players were surprised. Fortunately, David was able to stand firm and save the resulting spot-kick, preserving PMC's clean sheet.

The post-match team talk was very encouraging for all as the previous pre-season games had achieved the goals of assimilating new players into the team, and also concretising positions and tactics for the season.

Pre-season Friendly vs CAG (8th Feb)

The PMC Team gathered at Serangoon Sec on a hot Sunday afternoon for its 4th pre-season friendly against Calvary Assembly of God (CAG), looking to put the final touches on its preparations for CRC2015. A very strong starting line-up took to the field, with players intent on cementing their place for the upcoming season.

Almost immediately from kick-off, Jacob scored what could be PMC's quickest ever goal scored in a competitive match. A long ball was perfectly delivered by Jingzhong into Jacob's path and the onrushing CAG GK mis-calculated his interception, allowing Jacob to get to the ball first and roll it into an empty net. It was the perfect start for PMC, taking this early lead, and pressing CAG from the get go. PMC had settled well into the rhythm of the match, with the defensive midfield duo of Jeremy Sin and Kee Min doing an excellent job of stopping any CAG advances, and the back-four of Maurice, Daniel Chen, Martin and Weijie (at LB) sweeping up any loose balls. CAG tried to use their youthful speed and counter-attacks to trouble PMC, but by-and-large, they did not make any significant inroads within the first 20min of the match. Most outstanding during this time was probably David Lim's return as GK, making light work of long range shots and sweeping up nicely with his quick movement. Before long, PMC scored a 2nd goal, with a quick direct move starting with Daniel Chen, to Jingzhong, who again delivered a precise through ball to Jacob, who sprinted beyond the CAG last man to fire past the CAG GK. The Jingzhong-Jacob partnership has reaped huge rewards in this pre-season, combining already for 4 goals and 6 assists. With the score at 2-0, PMC took a more controlled approach for the rest of the half, clearing any danger without fuss to preserve its lead at half-time.

With another solid first half performance (following last week's 3-1 HT lead), the second half again focused on doing some experimentation to firm up possible permutations for the league season. Needless to say, with a changed line-up and players trying out unfamiliar positions, the 2nd half didn't start off so smoothly for PMC. There were fewer completed passes and far more hurried clearances and long balls, as CAG tried to get back into the match with some controlled passing and incisive play. CAG finally got back into the match when a nice cross from their left found their on-rushing forward beating the offside. David Lim was there to meet the ball, but somehow let the ball slip through his fingers, allowing the forward to roll the ball into an empty net. At 2-1, more PMC changes were made to give David Lim a run-out at LM and Michael some GK time. With more changes, CAG naturally managed to capitalised on the new look defence to float another cross behind the back line, allowing their forward to beat Michael with a first-time volley. At 2-2, it was all to play for and CAG found enough drive to score the winner when a corner was expertly diverted goal-wards by a CAG player in the box. The pace of the ball left all PMC players flat-footed and CAG players in dreamland, as they completed a comeback victory. The remaining moments of the match were marred in unnecessary ugliness when a CAG player needlessly elbowed Michael while challenging for the ball, causing Michael to react angrily. Once players calmed down, the referee blew for full-time.

Scoreline aside, the game gave the leaders great insight into what would work and what would not during matchplay, further confirming the probable starting line-up and positions for players.