Story by Jiexin Neo/Red Sports. Photos by Clara Yuan/Red Sports
Kenneth Yeo (NYJC #9) scores the second goal for NYJC. (Photo 1 © Clara Yuan/Red Sports)
Nanyang Junior College, Thursday, May 15, 2014 — Nanyang Junior College (NYJC) defeated Saint Joseph’s Institution International (SJII) 3–0 in their final game in the National A Division Boys Football Championship.
NYJC had one draw and one loss in this round, and would only have advanced into the semi-finals if Meridian Junior College had beaten Saint Andrew’s Junior College in another game. However, that game was drawn and thus both NYJC and SJI did not qualify for the semi-finals and had to settle for a top-eight finish.
NYJC’s Kenneth Yeo (#9) scored two goals, while teammate Darryl Ong (#3) had one.
NYJC tried for a goal right after kick-off, but the shot was too weak and the SJII goalkeeper Tushar Wadhwani (#1) collected effortlessly. Soon after, Darryl Ong (NYJC #3) converted a free-kick just outside the box to put NYJC 1–0 up.
Joshua Fung (SJII #17) passed the ball to Kevin Gun (SJI #14) who tried for a goal but it was way over the crossbar. Joshua (SJII #17) found Mateus Aboud (SJII #13) with another good pass but the ball was shot out of bounds. In the next attack, Tristan Koay (SJII #7) successfully connected on a corner, but his header went wide of the post. SJII had a couple more tries, but failed to score.
Just before the halftime break, Chiang Ken Ji (NYJC #7) had a chance right in front of the net, but Ulysses Kee (SJII #9) cleared it in time to leave NYJC with a 1–0 lead at half time.
Early in the second half, Kenneth Yeo (NYJC #9) slotted one in despite pressure from his defender to give NYJC a 2–0 lead. Ulysses Kee (SJII #9) then had cramps and Jonathan Lim (NYJC #5) displayed good sportsmanship by helping him stretch his leg.
For NYJC, Muhammad Hakim (#11) was instrumental in directing his team with well-placed passes and communicated well with his teammates on the pitch. Watanabe Charles Ryo (#16) also had several good runs for the team. NYJC had a couple of scoring opportunities but missed while SJII goalkeeper Tushar (#1) saved many good attempts.
NYJC finally got their third goal when Kenneth Yeo (NYJC #9), who was just outside the box, fired the ball straight into the back of the net to score his second goal of the game. Hakim (NYJC #11) tried for another shot but hit the woodwork which would have been a fitting reward for his efforts.
NYJC captain, Hakim (#11), said, “It was brilliant since day one. We trained hard for pre-season and got into the A Div more confident. We did our best, we did good, and I couldn’t be more proud of my team. We’ve been causing problems in big games, small games we took our chances. We might lose some, we might win some, but at the end of the day, as long as we do our best, I’m especially proud of the team.”
SJII captain, Manuel Morano (#15), said, “It was a good start for the season, as we won all games. We won five out of five in round one, so we thought we would be at least better than the other teams. We usually have a lot of support from our seniors who have graduated so we will definitely keep an eye out for our juniors.”
SJII vice-captain, Tristan (#7), said, “It’s really disappointing for the team too. We are extremely disappointed. I thought we’d at least do better than we’ve done and it’s incredibly disappointing.”
Scoring by Period
NYJC vs SJII
First half: 1–0
Second half: 2–0 (3–0)
Final score: 3–0
Scorers
NYJC
Kenneth Yeo (#9) – 2 goals
Darryl Ong (#3) – 1 goal
NYJC Roster
Qiao Shizhe (#1), Lian Jiaqi (#2), Darryl Ong Wei Xiang (#3), Tang Guang Yan (#4), Lim Ngee Liang Jonathan (#5), Lee Chong Hon (#6), Chiang Ken Ji (#7), Julian Lim Jian Wei (#8), Kenneth Yeo Zhen Hong (#9), Lee Jian Wei Anson (#10), Muhammad Hakim Bin Idris (#11), Gareth Keigan Lee Zong De (#12), Aavan Lee Kuan Ing (#13), Thong Giggs (#14), Nguyen Hoang Dong (#15), Watanabe Charles Ryo (#16), Chan Song Wei Jeremy (#17), Nurdin Nashrullah (#18), Cassius Tan Shinn Han (#19), Larry Lee Ken Ann (#20)
SJII Roster
Tushar Ramesh Wadhwani (#1), Robert Ashburn (#2), Avinaash Padmanabhan (#3), Jonathan Ren Wei Fung (#4), Brandon Roberts (#5), Dhaneshan Thirugnanasambhandon (#6), Tristan Koay Shen Jin (#7), Isaac Siow (#8), Ulysses Kee (#9), Johann Fernando (#10), Raynor Koesomo (#11), Christiando Yusgianto (#12), Mateus Aboud (#13), Kevin Gun Hwi Lim (#14), Manuel Morano (#15), Ian Lok Yu Hern (#16), Joshua Fung Sze Kiun (#17), Pushpin Singh (#18), Rohan Mathew Palathinkal (#19), Ben Rose (#20)
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