A hard-fought match won by an exceptional talent

Maestro 2 : 1 Vipers (Rong An x2)

Match Review by Chris Tan

 *Disclaimer – The article is written based on the personal admiration than the view of the whole team.

 

This is a hard-fought battle against Vipers won by an exceptional talent.

In the Romance of 3 kingdoms, there was a saying that a person with exceptional skills could defeat a thousand soldiers. To cut the story short, there was a General named Guan Yu, he won 9 districts and killed 6 general in the process of escape. In the semi-final of Champions League in the year 2008, Arsenal was bombarded by waves of attacks by Real Madrid. The team struggled to hold off the strongest team in Europe away from home, yet one man stood out. Thierry Henry single handedly dribbled from a clearance of a corner, all the way to the penalty box and won the game for Arsenal in the dying minutes. In the previous occasion of the Champions League final when Man Utd was 3 – 1 down, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer scored a dramatic winner goal that broke the hearts of Bayer Munich. I was at Paulander (German pub) when I actually saw a German man cried as he watched the team crumbled in despair. In this occasion, Rong An did what normal man was unable to achieve.

 

The game started with 12 men available for selection – 2 goalkeepers (Calvin, Gary). All Maestro players had no substitution throughout the game right at the middle of the day (1pm match). Dehydration was the main concern and yet NONE (Yes, none!) had requested for a substitution due to fatigue throughout the match. The last match against Vipers saw Rong An with a brace of 4 goals, a match that saw Messiah rambled in agony and wanted sweet revenge on the same turf. The match started with 2 men marking Rong An and 2 men as backup in case he managed to escape, a tactic proven effective against the Voodoo RongAn. The approach to the game with Vipers was also to close down any fluid passing by Maestro to ensure possession control was strictly limited. A strategy that was proven effective in most part of the game, with Maestro unable to reach the cruising control needed. With only few defenders to choose from, Hakim had to step back to left back role and Eric in the defensive midfield position.

 

With a record of 6 matches unbeaten, there was morale leading to the game. Both sides had their equal share of chances. There were a few scares with recent return of Goalkeeper Gary, unable to link well with defenders. However, there were no obvious threats to the Vipers attacks. At the noticeably 25 minutes to the game, Rong An received a ball from a throw-in. As usual, he was closed down fast by the defenders marking him. With a stroke of luck, he managed to shake them away. The next moment was sensational – Out of a range of the penalty box and tightest angle and space possible, Rong An unleashed a curling dipping and thunderous shot. The shot swirled crookedly and seemingly awkward to the keeper’s reach. The goal at that time seemed to be a goal we took for granted as we knew we would have won the match easily (To be honest, we have not lost to Vipers, we should be a little complacent).

Before the stroke of halftime, in the midst of a fluid defenders passing game, Norris slipped. The filtration system which Norris always boasted about, suddenly gave way. Water managed to sip through, and Messiah claimed the ball and slipped past in between the legs of Gary. Soft goal conceded, but that was probably the only chance that Vipers had on goal. The filtration system was quickly repaired by the encouragement of the team, and the defense remained stronger than before. Credits to GuoXian and Abi in the first half as their efforts were noticeably clear with Abi always fed from GuoXian by-line pass. Abi’s lungless acceleration had to be recovered with ample smoke stimulants (or pollutants?) during half time.

 

The second half saw much improvement to the play of Maestro despite many bad referee calls. Domination in possession was distinctive, but no instinctive at goal. So the scoreline remained the same till 80^th minute. Rong An managed to dribbled past his two markers and with a little space available in front of him, he unleashed another almost impossible shot. Impossible definition was the new motto for him, as impossible seemed to be the word for him all the time; Impossible to take the shot at such distance; Impossible for such little space on such power; Impossible for keeper to save such ball. The goal chipped past the keeper easily and almost immediately the heated Vipers started to have their hearts torn into pieces.

 

The Vipers had many dubious remarks on the referee and hurled vulgar language to him almost at every instances of a foul committed by them. Nonetheless, the referee held his ground with his inconsistent calls. The fouls continued to pile up as frustration rose against the losing Vipers. Vipers had to find blame to their lost and the only person innocent for such a day was the unlucky referee. However, there was no waves without a wind, the referee calls were indeed abnormal, there was even instances where there was an over-ruling the linesman for an offside call. Vipers claimed they would have the match won if not for the referee; Or perhaps would they? Would they win if not for the referee? (With the on-form Rong An and the filtration defense system of Maestro, it was certainly odds-favor-us match) It was definitely a question of fate than choice for Vipers.

 

Nothing is certain in football. Thus, complacency in the next match would be none tolerable. Let’s catch our 8^th match unbeaten streak next week, our greatest record ever.

 

Good Points

·        Despite the relentless abuse, Maestro held their ground with 11 men on the field. Tempers were held moderately, and Tempo was kept at a cool pace.

·        Norris was injured during the course of the match, it’s not the fragile Norris we once knew. He shook off the pain and continues.

·         Good job to Abi and GuoXian – Calm control play and quick reflexes down the flank.

·        Good teamwork shown with centre midfield dropping back to cover for loose balls, namely Gerald and Eric. Encouragement to Norris when he made a disastrous mistake.

·         Rong An – enough said. The person that creates an opportunity from Impossible.

 

Bad points

·         Long ball tactic against a high line defense can be dangerous. There would be concerns if Maestro were to meet fast pacy wingers that might slip through the filtration system.

·         No shots on target except Rong An. We need to relief the efforts from our main strikers, he was marked tightly but everyone else was not.  

·        Lacking penetration from the right wing. Typically, it was the right wing that took charge.

·        Tempers flared up as Vipers complained about the referee. In such instances, should Maestro defend referee’s decision so as not to give in to Vipers demands?

·        Fluid passing game interrupted by constant harassment of fast close-down strikers and midfielders. In such cases, is long ball a good strategy?