Ugly brawls mar Young Lions' 2-0 win over Indonesia in football friendly

Story by Koh Yizhe and Jan Lin/Red Sports. Photos by Lai Jun Wei/Red Sports.

Jurong West Stadium, Sunday, June 21, 2009 – A total of three red cards and nine yellow cards rained down on the field as hostility overshadowed Singapore’s 2-0 victory over Indonesia in an U-23 international friendly to prepare for the upcoming SEA Games in Laos this December.

The Singapore U-23, also known as the Young Lions, were on the prowl for a victory to redeem themselves after they were humiliated 0-3 by Malaysia U-23 last month then forced to settle for a lackluster 1-1 draw at home against Botswana last Wednesday.

Making their desire for redemption apparent right from the start, the Young Lions were first to show signs of life with promising runs into the attacking third and it was no surprise when they took the lead just 18 minutes into the game.

A quick free kick caught Indonesia's defense napping as Young Lions' 18-year-old captain Hariss Harun sent a thunderbolt of a shot right into the back of the net that gave Indonesia's 23-year-old goalkeeper Frenky Irawan no chance to keep it out.

The goal did, however, sparked the Indonesians into life as they pushed for an equalizer and kept Young Lions' goal keeper, Izwan Mahbud, busy between the goal posts.

Indonesia's Jajang Mulyana missed a couple of precious chances as his side managed to penetrate through Singapore's leaky defense but despite the Indonesians raining attacks on the Young Lions, the local strikers had fed off the confidence from the first goal as they stroked the ball confidently around the attacking third.

Local midfielder Gabriel Quak had a great chance to double the host's lead after winning the ball and found himself in prime position to go for goal. But instead of driving the ball across the goal mouth to his unmarked teammate, he opted to shoot, only to eventually see the ball flash wide.

Trailing 0-1, the Indonesians went on the hunt for the equaliser and came close with several attempts while Singapore soaked up the pressure and tried to extend their lead through counter-attacks.

This tactic eventually paid off when a Young Lions' counter-attack in the 61st minute gave 19-year-old Fazli Ayob the time and space to curl his shot from just outside the penalty area. Fazli's superb strike flew past Irawan and landed securely in the top corner of the net to double the hosts’ lead.

Just as the home side thought they would be able to cruise through the rest of the match with the comfortable two-goal cushion, disaster then struck when the Young Lions were reduced to ten men with less than 30 minutes on the clock.

Barely 2 minutes after Fazli found the net, he picked up the match's second yellow card as the game was slowly escalating into an ugly brawl when things got physical inside the penalty box.

While defending a free kick in the box, Young Lions' Irwan Shah got his marching orders when he was shown his second yellow card for his role in the scuffle. Then in a blink, the referee awarded another three yellow cards to the Indonesians within the next three minutes.

With tackles flying in hard and fast, things worsened 13 minutes later when a reckless two-footed challenge by Indonesia's Corneles Sergius Geddi prompted an angry reaction from Singapore’s substitute Shaiful Esah, who shoved the Indonesian forward as another fight erupted.

The 23-year-old defender had only graced the field for just ten minutes as he was brought on for Gabriel Quak in the 67th minute. Both players saw red from the referee and were sent back into the changing rooms in the 78th minute leaving both their sides handicapped.

Despite playing with only nine men for the remaining one-third of the match, the Young Lions survived the increasingly physical match and were fortunate to maintain a clean sheet when Indonesia's 19-year-old striker Yongki Aribowo had a shot saved off the line after Izwan Mahbud was forced out of position.

As the match crept to an end with Indonesia throwing their men forward, Singapore continued to find favour with counter-attacks. The essential pass to release the forwards was never found, but that mattered little as the Young Lions eventually ran away 2-0 winners.

"It was a very good and equal game, with two goals from 35 meters," commented Indonesia's coach Cesar Manuel Payovich Perez after the match.

Perez continued, "For the first goal, we weren't paying attention and they moved fast, allowing Hariss Harun to have a free shot. For the second one, it was an excellent shot."

On the three red cards, he said, "Both sides really wanted to win it and there's no point making a big deal about it. This is football."

The Young Lions' assistant coach Terry Pathmanathan was relatively pleased with his team's performance.

"They (the Singapore players) performed much better, even as individuals on the pitch," he said.

Explaining the key to the Young Lions' first victory after the three international friendly matches within a month, Pathmanathan said: "Previously, they were shy of taking shots, but today, they took their shots well. The decision making was also good, with timely shots made."