Revenge

Revenge against Cashew will come soon enough. Projected date of the match is on next Saturday, the 2nd of December at Dempsey pitch 1 in the afternoon.
Anyway, we will be doing this without the services of Zi Xiang, who's holidaying in New-Zealand and Kovan, who looks set to join another team as far as i know. Well not to worry there's a replacement lined up for him. The replacment is none other than Bo Yang, the striker from SJI XI who netted twice against us. He is rather physical and attacks the ball. He also heads the ball well and is willing to track back and defend( he can play in defence as well). Therefore he is not a carbon copy of Kovan but i'm sure he will be more succesful in front of the goal. Lets put it this way, Bo Yang is like a van Nisterooy while Kovan is like a Robinho. One is a poacher while the other a flashy player who is more individualistic than anything. Compare this: Kovan played 4 full matches and hasn't scored, while Bo Yang scored twice agianst us.
Lets all hope he joins, shall we?

Jeremy

New Posts

I want some ppl to step up and take the following positions outside the pitch.

Training organiser: plans and organises training for both fitness and football. Many options to choose from: CCAB, gym or field.

Match organiser: the person who contacts the opponents( and finding the right opponents) and contacting the referee and books the field.

Treasurer: also known as debt collecter. This guy will be the one everyone hates. He will have to go and collect money for booking of fields and the referee. He must be responsible and trusthworthy as he shall be in charge of any team fund.

Informer: the person who informs everyone about the latest updates on matches and trainings. Yeah he has to co-operate with the match organiser and training organiser.

Match reporter: confirm Daryl. Blog about the match. Pre and post match included.

Outing organiser: organise events for fun. Like movie, chalet etc.

*I strongly recommend you ppl not to sit back, do nothing, wait for match, go kick ball and not contribute*

Jeremy

Match VS Khalifah

Although not too many people are reading this...
There's a match against Khalifah FC this sunday at 5pm. Yup! Okay squad that will be travelling there are: Terence, Zi Xiang, Shawn, Reuben, Jeremy, Yinglun, Jun Jie, Kovan, Kamil, Lucas, Andy and Chien Ming. On loan players Ghalib and Ashton(kovan says he's good but i'm not convinced yet) are also travelling to cover for the following absentees: ACSI( Jethro, Wei Ian) and Daryl(climbing some bloody mountain as quoted). Therefore it shall be 4-5-1 as our starting formation with the following slayers-> GK: Ghalib LB: Lucas, CB: Zi Xiang, CB: Chien Ming, RB: Terence. LM: Kamil, CM: Yinglun, CM: Shawn, RM: Reuben. SST: Jeremy, ST: Kovan. Subs: Jun Jie, Andy, Ashton.

*No drastic changing of positions anytime during the match esp Kovan and Zi Xiang. Damm scary.*

Jeremy

What a match

As you people can refer to Daryl's previous post which was a report of the match, i shall not attempt to spam your minds with yet another form of a match summary.
To start of, everyone who is reading this very line give yourself a huge round of appaulse. As any Tom, Dick or pig(pardon my england) can tell, improvement was evident. From the defence to attack it was a much better performance by everyone and it definetly bodes well for the future. Lets start from the attack, for the first time i could feel that the midfielders and strikers were linking up with each other well and neat, crisp passes were exchanged. On a personal note, i feel that the chemistry between Shawn and me is growing and i realise that both our playing styles complement each other well as either of us will cover for the other when one is challenging for or with the ball as seen in the match against Sapphire FC(screw you Daryl, your Gerrard Lampard analysis is so wrong). Next, midfielders. Jethro did a very good job and is turning out to be our Michael Essien as he covers every blade of grass with endless and tireless running. Well done mate! Eh clap la you poker faced readers. Wei Ian is almost an exact replica of Jethro abeit a more defensive minded type and is starting to reach his peak form which was achieved before the exams. Moving on the defence. Another makeshift back 4 lined up yet again but managed to cope under relentless attacks from over-aged players which underlines their crediblity. Maybe the only thing about the defence that is not up to standard yet is the clearance. I not talking about the length of clearance here. Anyone can clear a ball, its clearing the ball to a useful position that is worth mentioning. If you see a teammate in space why not pass it instead of punting the ball upfield for a un-intended target to chase? This can be worked on and undoubtly takes time and more matches to perfect. In conclusion it was a very good try from all Slayers and we could count ourselves unlucky not to come away with anything(think water puddle, post and dubious penalty decisions)

Next as we constantly suffer from shortage of subs and with Yinglun wanting to do some wheeling dealing in the free transfer market i shall mention some players worth taking notice of.

Out(as suggested by anon souce): * & **

In: I would suggest Gabriel from ACS as he seems the responisible and commited type. He is extremely versatile and therefore can play as midfielder, defender and target striker(in order of effectiveness). With his considerable size and speed he would be useful on the wing and as a demolition player. A centre midfield pairing of Yinglun and him would be a seemingly impregnable fortress that practically destorys all attacks.
In: Ghalib. No introduction needed here as you all saw for yourself on Saturday. Would be a extremely reliable goalkeeper leaving the outfield players with a ease of mind to concentrate on their own jobs. Also, he had previously played for CCKSS in the heart of defence and is another helluva defender(think Chien Ming).

Lastly as ACSians had left for China and would not be back till the 23rd and as the match against Khalifah FC will take place before they come back i would like to suggest the following formation( with the suggestions of a few Slayers inculded).
4-5-1
...............................................Kovan
...............................................Jeremy
Kamil......................................................Shawn.....................Reuben
...............................Yinglun

Lucas.....................Zi.Xiang...................Ming.........................Daryl
...................................................GK

*If Shawn has to go OBS Sabah during this period then Yinglun will take his place with Andy replacing No.11 as CDM.

Jeremy

Full Time Report: Sapphires FC vs Team Slayers

Sapphires FC vs Team Slayers, 3-1

Venue: Regent Secondary School Field
Kick off time: 3.30pm
Full time: 5.10pm
Weather Conditions: Overcast

Team Slayers Squad:
1. Ghalib (on loan keeper)
5. Terence
6. Zi Xiang
7. Shawn
8. Daryl
9. Reuben
10. Jeremy
11. Ying Lun
14. Kovan
16. Kamil
17. Lucas
18. Wei Ian
20. Andy
21. Jethro

Made No Appearances
4. Zi Han (uncontactable)
12. Jun Jie (just returned from camp, fatigue)
22. Chien Ming (formal lunch/ fatigue)

Team Slayers Disciplinary

1 Yellow Card (11. Ying Lun)
0 Red Cards

Injury During Match

8. Daryl- Cramp at Right Leg

Report

A closely competed match which could have gone either way. Unfortunately, it has gone against the Slayers once more. An exciting first half capped an outstanding display of midfielders Wei Ian and Jethro. Slayers' no. 18 and 21 dictated the pace of the first half with endless running, chasing of loose balls and continuous challenges to win possesion. The ACSians had most of the ball and sprayed decent passes and crosses to create a few chances. The match began with both sides having 50-50 possesion but Sapphires look most likely to score first. The Sapphires coach, a clever tactician, was wise to ask his players to try testing both of Slayers' flanks to find weaknesses in the defence that consisted of 9. Reuben at left back, 11. Ying Lun and 20. Andy at the heart of the defence and 8. Daryl at right back. It was a pretty decent and strong defence with both centre backs doing the dirty job, winning balls, and clearing the danger. Left midfielder 4. Siva and left striker were the sparks for Sapphires creating chances by threading through balls and chipped through balls over the Slayers' backline. However, Andy and Daryl were able to counter such threats and manage to hold off the threat posed.

There were few occasions which Slayers did well to counter attack. Captain Jeremy and versatile Shawn who played on the left combined well to bring strikers Kovan and Zi Xiang into play. The quick passing and confused the right side of the Sapphires defence and there were at least thrice where Kovan troubled the right back by tricking pass him and putting in a cross for Zi Xiang waiting in the 6 yard box. The efforts of the two-footed Kovan paid off when his left footed cross just on the bye line lobbed over the advancing keeper and to an opened Zi Xiang who had an open goal to shoot into. The simple tap in goal was strongly protested by the Sapphires players who believed that the ball went out of play before it was crossed into the box. However, the referee had none of those and awarded a goal to surprised Slayers. The morale boosting goal also meant that Zi Xiang is the current top scorer with 2 goals in 3 games.

Soon after, Slayers began to threaten with more passing and possesion. Wei Ian won challenges in midfield, including many aerial battles and squared the ball to the adventurous Jeremy who did well in pulling off tricks to get pass the opposing right midfielder and did one-twos with strikers Kovan and Zi Xiang. The Slayers' attack almost paid off again when Jeremy got past the whole Sapphires defence and squared the ball to the waiting Zi Xiang who was once again unmarked in front of the goal. Jeremy unselfishly passed to Slayer's no.6, but the ball was dramatically slowed down upon having contact with the puddle of water in front of goal. The Sapphires' no. 1 was then able to recover the ball and pump it up field which started a counter attack. Slayers almost made it 2-0 when Kovan from left wing cut in to send a shot from an impossible angle that sent the ball curling at top spin and hit the far post. Kovan had another chance from a free kick but blasted it way off the cross bar. Ying Lun and Andy were inspiring in central of defence with Ying Lun clearing difficult balls and Andy duly covering for the rest of the defenders who were in a few occasions caught out of position. Chipped throughs from the Sapphires strikers were more often and it needed a header from Daryl who was last man in line to put the ball out for a corner before Sapphires' left midfielder got to it. The resultant corner was expertly cleared by Andy and in the end a goalkick. The goalkick rammed upfield was weak and it fell ultimately for a Sapphires midfielder after Kovan made a mistake and he tried his luck from 20 metres with a dipping right footed shot that lobbed over no. 1 Ghalib and into the goal. 1-1.

Another try from Sapphires had them 2-1 up when their striker received a perfect early cross from again the lively and creative left midfielder and sprint clear of the 2 centre backs and drove a low strike down to Ghalib's right. Jethro and Wei Ian tried again to attack down the right but were neutrelised and soon it was half time. Tired players in Team Slayers had no mood for a team talk and all rested without a perfect plan that would bring us back into the game. There were a few shuffles and changes that went tactically wrong. No one in the Slayers camp expected the Sapphires team to change the entire team except for the goalkeeper. The team was supposedly the senior team with average age of about 20. Slayers changed with Jeremy going off for Terence and the whole backline change as Ying Lun moved up as target man and Zi Xiang moved back as centre back. Kovan drifted to the right and Daryl moved to leftback. It was chaotic and unorganised as many players were uncomfortable in the new positions. Only Jethro looked good attacking on the left with his tireless running and Wei Ian won more balls in CDM. Shawn and Reuben were isolated on the right but combined to give a few chances that were cut out by the Sapphires defence. Zi Xiang was awesome in the centre of defence with headers, last ditch tackles and providing cover for Terence and Andy. Soon, Jeremy decided a decent tactical change that saw Daryl coming off presumably for a rest and Kamil going on as left back where he looked extremely comfortable. That provided more stability and prompted Kovan who was soon had few chances to touch the ball to move to centre back. Andy drifted slight up as CDM and the back line seems strong with the 2 strikers who strangely met at centre back. Jeremy then went on for Andy who was exhausted. Reuben stayed at right wing with Shawn slightly to the middle and Jeremy went to the left. The plan seem to work out and Slayers held on. Jeremy almost equalised when his shot from the edge of the box was cleared off the line from a resultant corner. What a chance to equalise!

Until poor control by Reuben allowed a Sapphire player to race free of the defence and rammed a low shot under the advancing Ghalib. It became 3-1. Ying Lun created a chance to make it 3-2 when he placed a perfectly weighted through ball to the left for the lightning speed Kamil sprinting from the back. Kamil had a chance of his life that could have saved the Slayers but he decided not to shoot and soon lost the ball to the Sapphire defender. Soon after, Ying Lun was hacked down and needed to come off. Daryl went on again and had a free role drifting everywhere or act as cover for Kovan who went up more often and Zi Xiang who also was active in corners and free kicks. Lucas then replaced Jethro whose steam ran out finally after running kilometres in this match. No. 17 came on saw Kamil moving to left midfield and Jeremy to a more central role. Zi Xiang was superb in the dying minutes of the match and made countless challenges and blocks that prevented an embarassing defeat for the Slayers. He even used his face to block a drive that seem goalbound. Shawn also ran out of steam and came off for a CCK supporter in stoppage time. The game ended when a corner on the left was sent to the far post where a Sapphires striker whacked the post and the referee enthusiatically blew the final whistle for a dramatic game. Final score, Sapphires FC 3, Team Slayers 1.

Improvement

That match was there for us to win it, but due to several reasons, we still lost.

In My Opinion :

Firstly, its due to our fitness. Most of our players can't last the whole match. We shouldn't blame the opponents for brining on a fresh and new team after the half-time interval. We should take full advantage of our fitness. We have a team of fit and young players, which 2.4km run is a piece of cake, but remember, when was the last time you ran 2.4km? Running when playing street soccer doesn't help, this is because the field is around 4 times bigger than the court and we will have to run up and down the field for a total of 90mins. Fitness doesn't only mean running. To me, its strength. I think we will have to work on our pull-ups for the next few weeks. It helps in the distance of our throw ins and we can also get a A for pull-ups next year (for sec 3s this year).
Apart from fitness, the lack of substitutes was also a problem for us. I know that at least we had substitutes for this match, compared to the other match, but the Sapphires coach told me :"This is a friendly game ar... not tournament, so you can have as many subs as you want! I have an A team and a B team, age ranges from 11 to 22." Thats the reason they brought on a whole new team. From 0 subs to 3 subs, it was an improvement. Since its a friendly match and our fitness is so bad, we should have more substitutes. This problem should be solved by the next few matches.

In addition, when in game, our stupid mistakes just pop up again. Offside is something you can avoid, but sometimes some dumb referee will just 'catch' you offside when you aren't. Throw ins are still our main problem. I have to point out people now. Shawn, Reuben and Kovan. Its either the leg will just kick up or the hand is just too lazy to swing.(especially reuben) Daryl has made a great improvement, and so did the rest of the team. I didn't take any throw ins so i can't say anything about myself. Our goalkicks were poor. In the 1st half, it was OK. But i just don't know what happen to Gaib in the 2nd half. His goal kicks will always land nicely for the other team. Is it his fault, or that there is just nobody in mid-field to challenge the other guy for the ball? Aerial assault was weak as nobody other than Wei Ian, Zi Xiang and Daryl dared to header. Ball control was terrible as well (Reuben...). Passes were crap and corners were screwed up. All these can be improved.

I don't think we should be unhappy about another loss under the hands of "Mats". We really deserved it. Half time was a time to discuss our formation and what went wrong, but you guys were just so pissed about letting in 2 goals that i get replies like " shut up lah","@#$%","We gonna get thrashed..." No one was willing to talk. Why can't we rest and talk at the same time? You know that its a very short period of time? So make full use of it! Another reason why we sucked is because very few people turn up for trainings. How do we play AS A TEAM if you just want to come for the matches and not even train with us?

Is this an improvement? Have we played to our fullest potential?

Never mind,
Special thanks to:
Lucas, for coming even though he had fever
CCK supporters, for cheering for us!
All Slayers who were present...

Daryl : As usual, the full-time report.
Jeremy : As usual also, changes to our team, tactics and positions and what went wrong.

YingLun