Playouts put Benedetto to the sword with two late goals in a match that sees them coming back to winning form after a poor month of rain-outs and losses. In doing so, Playouts showed the way that football should be played – with the feet, not with the mouth.
First Half
Sunday 1pm is definitely a merciless time to play football, and Mr Sun made sure of that by coming out to watch (over) the game. Playouts kicked off with a positive game plan – beat benedetto boys – and the personnel to do it. Shaun Cech started in goal, protected by Jerry Vidic and Ferdi-cong and Shao and Triangle-peg-oblong-hole Guoming. Running the engine room was Kenny good-to-be-back-yay-I’m-no-longer-a-DM Khor with Abiel Tan in partnership, flanked by Geoffrey Pires and Nedved. And up top was Israel together with Duns.
Playouts started in imperious fashion, bossing the game from the get-go. Especially bossy were Kenny and Abiel, who ran the midfield like they ran their WAGS – one hand on the throttle and the other on the ball(s). Abiel, in particular, was guilty of some nifty footwork and body feints, and might correctly be accused of deceiving his Benedetto opposite number more times than your regular conman would. With Kenny breaking up every opposition move (bringing to mind the battleground that is local politics), Abiel was free to roam and unleash his fury – fury at having joined RJ instead of this wonderful bunch of fun-loving kids – at the opposition defence. Together with roving wingers Geoff and Ed, cross after cross was fed into the b-box, but alas the goal did not come. Not for want of trying, for Israel and Duns were tracking hard Rooney-style, and Izzy even fed Dunstan on one occasion with a sweet true ball, only for Duns to put just wide. The fans on the side responded by hollering, “Dunstan, the goals in Shang Hai are bigger aren’t they?” Any attack from the opposition was easily knocked away by the twin towers, or by the unyielding fullbacks. Despite the lion’s share of possession, the game was even going into the much needed break.
Second Half
Playouts changed tack for the start of the second half, sending on Adrian, Lionel, Jansen and NKOTB Daniel, who also happens to be Lionel’s brother(that makes 3 kongs in the team). Adrian put in a solid performance, intercepting every which ball and even had one or two decent crosses into the b-box, which is more than Nedved can say he’s done in a season. Jansen provided a more subtle style to geoff’s swashbuckling vigour, while Lionel did just about everything but score. It was hard-going against a team that was only interested in playing for the draw, but it’s always more enjoyable camping in the other half than in your own. Despite the obvious difficulty in finding a way through, Playouts kept up their positive spirits and belief; few other teams have as storied and fabled a history as the Playouts kids do amongst each other, and their belief in each other was telling, especially so given the stark contrast.
As the game wore on, it seemed to degenerate more into a shouting match than a football one, but just as wine keeps well in underground cellars, so too do grown-up kids keep cool in the heat of battle. Approaching the last 7minutes and still tied at 0-0, Isa-le-sulk-gan threw all caution to the wind and with one last roll of the dice, threw himself onto the pitch like caution tossed wildly about by a raging cyclone. Rampaging down the left flank, he won a corner, and duly converted with an Inzaghi tap-in off Lionel’s cross. 1-0 to the Playouts and the band came marching home! The dull-looking draw game was instantly brought to life with the goal, following which came a colourful rant at the referee and a slightly less colourful red for the Mouth. Not content with just the one, Le Sulk collected Shaun’s counter-attack goal kick and proceeded to lob the keeper from the edge of the B-box, celebrating with his now-infamous thrust. As all hell broke loose, the referee decided that he had received enough vitriol for the day and called time on the 80min.
Playouts displayed a fantastic positive attitude during the whole game, disciplining themselves and showing the way football should be played, with some neat interchange play and possession football. Congrats to Playouts for fighting the good fight.
MOM – Shao
Despite Isa’s 2-goal heroics, the real unsung hero of the day, and so far the season, was Shao. One year on from his famous shack dog-face against CISCO, he has regained his fitness and his starting place in the line-up, and what a game he had! Overlapping time and again, crossing two or three decent balls, he even remembered to lock his ankle (gasp!). And defensively, what an animal (right, germaine?)! His wall passing with Geoff and Abiel led to many chances being crafted down the right, and we should also not forget that it’s this same boy who brings water and collects money at every game, as if running the right flank and the F1 pitstop weren’t enough on his palette already. Good work Shao, you deserve your recent promotion, time to give the team a treat.
Disclaimer: Please excuse the awful expressions that have been painfully contrived to make this report that much less credible. The author (Captain Edwin Lim) felt like he was dragging roqueforte cheese through a paper shredder and pulling the extruded strands of cheese hair behind him. Please send any comments his way; you can find the author at doyourtalking@thepitch.com.sg.
