Friendly Match Report: PMC vs BNP Paribas (31st May)

The PMC Soccer Team took the opportunity of a 5th Saturday to host BNP Paribas to a friendly match at Hai Sing Catholic School. BNP Paribas takes part in the Financial Institutions League and looked to provide some stiff competition in helping PMC prepare for their next CRC match. Certainly upon arriving at Hai Sing, it was clear that BNP was largely made up of foreign talent, with some huge caucasian players. Nonetheless, the order of the day was to focus on playing to the best of our ability and pass the ball around as much as possible. With a number of players injured, it was also a good opportunity to give some of our potential players a run-out, with Jinwei, Luke and Ryan joining us in this regard.

The starting line-up was as follows:

Jeremy Tan

Isaac - Kevin - Lincoln

Kee Min - Timothy

Daniel Chen - Weijie - Jacob - Daniel Low

Michael

The match started at quite a furious pace, with BNP controlling the ball well and launching attacks via the wings. PMC was happy to 'soak and strike', as it had done well against FMC earlier in the season. Although possession of the ball was in favour of BNP, chances of goal were quite even, with Jeremy Tan and Isaac both having half chances in the course of the first half. The deadlock was only broken when BNP took advantage of a free kick to launch a high ball into the box, where their 6-foot-4-inch midfielder leapt the highest to nod the ball into the net. At 1-0, BNP was happy to play keep ball under hot conditions and held their lead till half time.

Not playing badly at all, the encouragement was for PMC to continue doing what they do best to get back into the match. However, before the comeback ensued, PMC fell behind by another goal, through almost identical circumstances. This time, it was a corner that was played into the middle of the 18-yard-box where the same 6-foot-4-inch midfielder headed the ball into the net, despite Jacob already putting his body on his opponent. Being 2-0 down did not deter PMC, which made a great comeback with BNP fading under the heat. PMC's first goal came in through sheer determination, when the ball was 'pinballed' on the edge of the box, and Joel supplying the final pass to Jinwei, who finished neatly. PMC's equalising goal then saw Jinwei being the provider, weaving down the left wing and threading a nice low cross into the box for Jeremy Tan to chip neatly over the GK. At 2-2, it was all to play for. In PMC's great desire to press for the winning goal, a big gap had formed between defence and midfield. With 5min to go, BNP was able to exploit that gap, allowing their midfielder to run into the space and fire a stiff shot into goal for the winner.

Despite the loss, valuable lessons were learnt in the defending of set pieces and coming from behind. It was certainly a worthwhile experience for all who turned up.

Soccer Fellowship Report (25th May)

A combination of time of the year, weather and injuries meant that only 8 players turned up for this session of Soccer Fellowship. Ronnie shared on the topic of 'Why We Need to Pray and Why It Is Important' during devotions The players played using small goalposts and had a decent run-out despite the small numbers. 

Reported by: Ronnie Liew

Soccer Fellowship Report (10th May)

Following last week's win in the league, PMC soccer community turn up in large numbers in confidence of more wins to come in the coming league games. As the players stroll into now our self-proclaimed 'homeground" HSC, talk was all on last week's game, as those who missed out on that game congratulate each other and discuss about all the goals, all the assists, what could have been more if not for the misses.

As the guys gear up, devotion was shared this week about our life goals and plans. Scripture in relation was taken from Exodus 3, whereby the story of Moses was shared. We see God giving Moses the goal He chose for him. We all know that Moses had fled Egypt, and settled with his family tending to his father-in-law's flock in Median. After leaving Egypt for 40 years, he probably would have forgotten the earlier events in Egypt, and his goal is probably just to retire as a farmer. Yet, God call out to him to return to Egypt to free the Israelites. This was not Moses's goal, but God's goal. Moses's reaction to God's goal for this assignment shows his humility and humanity. He questioned, " Who am I that I should go to the Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" And yet, God still used him. God did not merely give Moses the specific goal. He defined the plan, the needed steps and skills, He provided Aaron to help Moses. God knows the goal is useless without a plan. So he told Moses where to go, to whom, for what purpose and how to eventually celebrate the victory. Often we forgot God knows everything about us, our past, present and future. We question God and point him to our flaws. We don't see the victory God shows us when He presents His goals. We need to understand a goal is the destination, the plan is the journey. The goal will be clear and unlikely to change, but the plan will be fuzzy and will have several possible paths. That is why its essential to continue to listen to God about the journey's details. Any obstacles we meet are merely learning stations that teaches us to lean on Jesus. We need to stay focus on Christ and let Him lead, for He knows the way, we don't! Our life goal is to glorify God. It gives the context for all we do and is the reason we do everything. To achieve these goals, we follow plans, which are part of our "sanctification" journey to become like Christ. And as we carry out plans, don't be surprised when conditions worsen before getting better. Always reach out to God to confirm His goals for us and to give us wisdom as He guide us through our challenges! Devotion was concluded whereby I shared the few cross-junction in my life; the path and dilemma to choose after O-levels and midway through university days.

Soccer was then preceded with about 8 a-side on a half-field, the reds-yellows versus the other colours. 10 minutes in, a couple more youths joined our kick-a-bouts and we switched to a full match field size, with goal scoring only in the 6-yard box. Goals were plentiful throughout the session, with wei-en especially getting a lot of them as he takes full advantage of the no offside-rule. Key soccer highlights were on how the PMC competitive players were able to practise their play in their respective position. Jem and WJ were in defence for the Reds wherein much defensive work was carried out against a very strong attack 4 of JZ, YJ, Shel and Jacob. Other exciting work noted was the potential shown in some of the youths who have been attending soccer fellowship with this soccer community for awhile now. Isaac and friends sure show good athletics and touches, and i'm sure in time to come, these young football enthusiasts will develop to become very good footballers. Everyone had a good 2 halves run-out under the hot afternoon sun, and the session ended promptly at 5pm.

CRC2014 Match Report #4: PMC vs FMC (4th May)

Scorching hot weather greeted both teams as they arrived at Hai Sing Catholic School for a showdown. PMC players were cautiously optimistic, as we were playing on our home turf against last year's 4th place team. However, as the CRC fixtures would have it, it was FMC designated as the home team, even though they had to travel all the way from Commonwealth to our backyard. PMC's pre-match anxieties were heightened when no one was able to contact Rusydi before the start of S&S, which started without him, leaving him ineligible to play even if he had turned up later. A quick change of the starting line-up was needed once S&S was conducted by FMC. 

Combined pre-match team photo of FMC and PMC

After S&S, the PMC team got organised and lined up in the following manner for the match:

Jeremy Tan

Jingzhong - Kevin - Isaac

Sheldon - Kee Min

Daniel Chen - Jeremy Sin - Daniel Low - Samuel

David Lim

There were many 'firsts' in the above line-up, due to some players being away and Rusydi not turning up, but the mood amongst the players were positive, looking forward to a good result. It was clear from the outset that PMC was up against young, fast and direct opponents. In the first 10min, PMC was already defending wave after wave of attacks from FMC. PMC's 1 or 2 balls in FMC territory were from some counter attacks led by Jingzhong. On one such quick breakaway, a 50-50 ball was challenged by Jingzhong, which left the FMC player on the ground, likely from how he fell. He was not able to play any further part in the match, making FMC field its only substitute for the match. 5min later, it was PMC's turn to lose its first player. The fast pace of the game and heavy defending caused Daniel Chen to limp off. Justin came on in his place, moving to RM with Isaac moving down to LB. Somehow, this series of changes stabilised the team, and even though the approach to counter-attack was the same, the results were very different for the rest of the half. One early big boot from David Lim started things going at about the 20min mark. The long ball was allowed to bounce by the FMC defence, and Jingzhong was first to it in the box, volleying the ball past the stranded FMC GK for PMC's first goal. Being ahead for the first time this season encouraged PMC to defend stoutly and counter for the next goal. All these came after the 25th min, when David Sng had come on to replace Jeremy Tan. The 2nd goal came from a quick breakaway after defending. An early ball from Sheldon found Jingzhong racing down the left, who beat the defender and planted a firm shot that the FMC GK could only parry into David Sng's path, who made no mistake with the put away. The 3rd goal came in similar fashion, but the roles of scorer and assistant were reversed. This time, the early ball from Sheldon was to David Sng, who crossed low into the box. Jingzhong was there to hold off the defender and slot the ball through the FMC GK's legs to put PMC 3-0 up before the half. There were some close shaves in defence before the break, but by and large, PMC had played well to take the lead at halftime. 

The second half team-talk focused on playing the same way and not sit back. The team went back on the field, unchanged to continue pressing for more goals. However, within the first 5min, PMC had to make another enforced change, with Kevin pulling his back and being replaced by Cheng Qian. FMC was committed to getting back into the match and posed a threat, mainly from the right flank. On one occasion, a shot by the winger stung the fingers of David Lim, who reacted well to tip the shot over the bar. The match result was put beyond doubt when Yi Jun (having replaced David Sng), crossed early to Jingzhong, allowing him to sprint and beat the GK with a low shot to complete his hat-trick. There was even a 4th goal for Jingzhong, when Cheng Qian played him in again through the middle. His shot went into goal and came out of the side netting. The referee, Shah, inexplicably waved play-on, despite protests from everyone, including FMC players and COS players warming up behind the goal, who witnessed that it was legitimate and tried to tell the referee so. Nonetheless, the disallowed goal did not dampen PMC spirits, being 4-0 up. However, a clear area of improvement was the lack of discipline in the final 10min, when too many players decided to abandon their positions in search of personal glory. This left gaps in the defence, allowing a speculative effort from an FMC winger to sail into goal, robbing the PMC defence of a well-deserved clean sheet. 

The match ended 4-1 in favour of PMC, its first victory in CRC2014. This was certainly an encouraging result, given the unavailability of key players and last minute changes to the team. Certainly having played together all season has helped to bring the team to a higher understanding of one another and this bodes well for the upcoming matches. 

Soccer Fellowship Report (26th April)

It was absolutely beautiful weather as a large group of players turned up for Soccer Fellowship this Saturday. The call to rally players from the Soccer Team to do some training finally paid off as 14 players from the Soccer Team turned up, with friends and other Soccer Community regulars to make up 20 players in total for the day. Before play started, Ronnie shared devotions, encouraging all to turn to the assurance of knowing God and trusting Him, as so many uncertain things happen in the world that we cannot understand, e.g. sinking of South Korean ferry. 

 Ronnie sharing devotions before the start of play

Play started after the 2 teams grouped themselves, with the dark colours (DC) against the light colours (LC). In an unplanned way, the LC seemed to have more of the central players from the Soccer Team, and the DC had more of the wide players, which made for an interest contest of styles. With 20 players, the team took on each other full field, without GKs, scoring only from inside the six-yard-box.

The LC started much more confidently, keeping ball and passing it around to good effect, while the DC did most of the chasing. It was no surprise that the LC scored first, but the scorer was perhaps the surprise, as it was Michael, playing as the lone striker, converting the put-through by Kevin. From there, the LC scored another couple of goals before the DC pulled one back before half-time.

The DC certainly were more composed after the break, keeping the ball much better and having lots more chances, with David Lim and Yi Jun finally involved in some good link-up play. Another couple of goals were scored by both sides before free play stopped.

This was when the Soccer Team took the last 15min to work on some build-up drills and also attacking/defending from dead-ball situations. The session ended with the Soccer Team composing and taking the photo below to enter in the CRC2014 Facebook contest.

'Blues Parking the Bus'

CRC2014 Match Report #3: PMC vs CBC (20th April)

The PMC team was full of confidence as it made its way to Anderson Secondary for the 'must-win' game against CBC. Even missing 6 first-teamers did not rob PMC from knowing that it could end the match with its first victory of the year. An almost full team of 17 players turned up, with 'injured' supporters Weijie and Daniel Low on hand to cheer the team on. Samuel from CBC led both teams in the Easter Sunday S&S before team shots were taken and the match ready to kick off.

PMC lined up in the following manner for kick-off:

David Sng

Isaac - Jingzhong - Rusydi

Kevin - Sheldon

Eddie - Jacob - Jeremy Sin - Andy

David Lim

PMC started the match brightly, obviously the hungrier of the 2 teams. Some crisp passing was seen down the flanks for Isaac and Rusydi to have quite a number of touches. The first chance of the match fell to Jingzhong with a low cross from the right, but his stiff shot was off target. It was clear that CBC's method to counter PMC's swift play was to opt for Route 1 football, constantly pumping balls high and deep into PMC's half, allowing their lone forward to chase. These long balls were easily cleared by Jacob and Jeremy, until a speculative high ball was left by both Eddie and Isaac on the left, allowing the CBC winger to find his way down the flank to deliver a speculative cross-shot which spun in the air to deceive David in goal, putting CBC 1-0 up against the run of play. As fluky as it seemed, it wasn't the first time this season that PMC had been caught out by such a goal, and clearly the message to clear the ball quickly and decisively from their own half had not sunk in. PMC's response was positive, continuing with its focus on getting the balls to the wings quickly to create chances. On one such attack, a 50-50 ball played into the box was met by Jingzhong faster than the onrushing CBC GK, who took Jingzhong down quite robustly. This was just one of the many physical challenges that CBC players made in the first half. The referee pointed to the penalty spot immediately and Rusydi calmly stroked the ball into the bottom corner of the net to bring the match to 1-1. For the rest of the half, it was all PMC, trying to take the lead, but to no avail. With 15min of the half remaining, David Sng left the field for Lincoln to come in at RM and Rusydi pushing up to CF, but that change only brought a few chances which were not put away.

The second half began with one change- Daniel Chen coming on for Eddie at LB. Daniel's ability to play long balls certainly contributed to PMC's constant pressing of the CBC goal, but there was little breakthrough. Yi Jun came on 10min after the restart as CF, and although there were a number of good exchanges with Rusydi and Jingzhong, his one chance saw him blast the ball high from just inside the box. Frustration was beginning to set in as the final ball was just not there for PMC to put away. On CBC's part, their long ball game was producing a chance or two, but fortunately for PMC, even when its defence hesitated, the CBC forward was not sharp enough to score. A couple more changes took place, with Joel replacing Andy at RB and Maurice coming on for Kevin with some slight re-shuffling. Whatever PMC threw at CBC was not enough at the end of the day, and it certainly felt like it was 2 points lost rather than 1 point gained after the draw. Nonetheless, the team had not played badly and will live to win another day. Jacob closed in prayer after the post-match de-brief.

Thank God It's Good Friday...

Good Friday this year, comes in the midst of a number of tragedies that continue to show us the uncertainty of world around us. From the mysterious disappearance of MH370 to the South Korea ferry disaster, unpredictable tragic events shock us and leave us saddened at the loss of life, even if do not grieve in a personal capacity.

Good Friday is a reminder that amidst the uncertainty we see around us, there is hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, who promises to us that "There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens" (Ecclesiastes 3:1). This may be hard to see or feel when we look around us at what is going on in the world, but hope in Jesus Christ is born out of taking a step of faith. In the Bible, Jesus reminds us that if we place our hope in Him, He is preparing a home for us in heaven (John 14:2-3) and that He will never leave us or forsake us. The only way to gain access to a life of hope in Jesus is to:

A ccept that we are sinners in need of forgiveness

B elieve in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins

C ommit our lives to Him

(John 3:16)

The prayer of the Soccer Community leaders is that today, all of us will look to Jesus for hope and new life and know that Good Friday is only good, because Jesus died on the cross for our sins. May we all recognise that He is the only one who can give true hope in the world, and can be our cornerstone through all of life. 

Soccer Fellowship Report (12th April)

It was a good-weathered Saturday afternoon as we gathered at Hai Sing Catholic School for Soccer Fellowship. However at 310pm, the eager players were greeted by a locked school, and needed to wait another 20min before the field warden arrived to open the entrance to the field. This did not dampen everyone's spirits, and Sheldon took the opportunity to share devotions based on the topic of 'Home', first asking us trivia questions about the Home and Away form of BPL teams, and then reminding us that we have a Home waiting for us in heaven, if we believe in Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. 

After the field was open, players split themselves into 2 teams, the Reds and Whites (RW) versus the Other Colours (OC). Play was brisk, with RW pressing during the early exchanges, more players joined us through the game, with a total of 14 players present for Soccer Fellowship, which was a good number. Players enjoyed themselves by varying their positions and although no one kept score, it just went to show the fun that everyone was having, and also with the CRC2014 in mind for the Soccer Team players. We praise God for another wonderful Soccer Fellowship session.  

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.

SCS Cup 2014 Round 1: PMC vs ABC1 (30th March)

SCS cup 2014, unlike past seasons, was played in the midst of the league season instead of after the league games had concluded. This cup round brought PMC to Ahmad Ibrahim Secondary School, a first for many of PMC's Easties. Rain drizzled around Yishun in the afternoon, and as the gate to the field was inaccessible to all till about 310, the team geared up at the voiddeck across the field.

Players getting ready at the void deck while waiting for the school field to be opened

Thank God that when the field was eventually accessible, the rain had stopped and weather was almost perfect for a good game of soccer. Kevin led singspiration, followed with a devotion on the Beattitudes (Matthew 5: 3-12), with the key sharing on verse 5: Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the Earth.

PMC line-up:

Joel

Andy - Weijie - Jacob - Eddie

Jem - Tim

JZ - Kee Min - Rusydi

Lincoln



ABC kicked off the game, spreading the ball to the left and attacking down PMC left flank. A loose ball around the left corner flag was not cleared and ABC managed to whip in a wicked cross that swerved past everyone in the penalty box, hitting straight at PMC far post before going into the net. A very fortunate start for ABC, as they lead 1-0 at the first minute. PMC fought hard to get themselves back into the game, as they kept ABC many times in their own half. JZ, Rusdyi and Lincoln all had chances and shots at goal but fortunately for ABC, attempts were not converted. Just before half-time, ABC earned a free-kick in PMC half and they pushed many players into PMC penalty box. The cross came in and ABC's strong Uncle Tan was able to win the first aerial header across goal to his unmarked team-mate at the far post who shot straight at Joel, who could only parry it to another ABC player with no problem in placing the ball into the net.

 Getting ready for kick-off

 Eddie takes the throw-in

 PMC defends against the ABC1 throw

2nd half changes: Sam came on for Jem, YJ for Lincoln and Kevin for Eddie.

PMC started the second half with the same dominance in possession of the ball, keeping ABC in their half as was in the first half. Jem Tan came in for YJ in the last 15mins as PMC continued to push aggressively for goals. Rus saw plenty of the ball down the right, and using his pace all so often to beat ABC leftback that ABC devoted a fast player to man-mark Rus. So it came to no surprise that this battle caused PMC the first injury as Rus went down with cramps from his many sprints, and was substituted by Felix, with Andy now pushing up to RM, and Felix to RB. PMC's goal came when a through ball was collected by JZ (offside or not was subjective), and given his pace, ABC could not catch him and JZ finished in style. PMC continued to push and fight hard, however another injury befall them. Jacob over-exerted in a tackle and was next in line to go down with cramps,  subsequently replaced by Michael, who shift to LB, Kevin to LM, Sam slotting in next to WJ. Injuries to both key PMC players impacted the play as the shape of the team got messy and ABC were able to counter attack on numerous occasion, but Joel showed top class saves and urgency to keep PMC in the game.

Referee soon called the cup game to a close and Jacob closed in prayer.

FT: PMC 1 ABC 2.

Team photo after the match. To emphasise that we lost, Daniel Low points to the Man U crest.