Central Park XI

2

vs

British Club

1

Central Park XI keep their hopes alive while they extinguished British Club participation in the EFL Challenge Cup after a slim 2-1 win over at Bukit Timah Field. The latter 2nd defeat in the single round robin in Group A meant that their final match against the Singapore Vikings is a formality while the Vikings are thru to the semi-finals after a thumping 7-1 victory over Conchise Kings. Sharks win and Conchise's defeat meant that there is everything to play for both teams in the final group game.

Sharks started with an attacking lineup with trialist Sascha leading upfront partnering Murugesan. Vikram provided the creative trust in midfield ably supported with the likes of Jeremy Chua, Heng Li and Brendan Lim. The game barely kicked off when Murugesan was presented with a golden opportunity to give his team the lead but he fluffed his chance in front of the goal. A couple of chances fell yet again to the nippy forward but he was unable to capitalise. Sascha on the other hand keep the British defense busy with some clever interchange of passes. He came close to cap a good debut when Murugesan pulled the ball back into the box after some clever play but the German just missed the cutback by inches in the six yard box. The Brits on the other hand were dangerous with their set-pieces and while play seemed to focused more on the attacking half for Sharks, Kelvin decided to get entangled with some excess baggage with the opposition forward. After both players being clearly warned, they continued their antics and was rightfully sent-off for unsporting behaviour. Nonetheless, Sharks took the lead a minute later when Heng Li found Murugesan free in the middle and the latter beat two defenders to slot the ball coolly to the bottom right hand corner for the lead as Sharks took to the break with a slender 1-0 lead.

The second half started brightly for the boys in yellow with the inclusion of Muzzammil and Tomas in the middle. They were some lovely one-touch play between the two with Vikram achoring upfront and the trio were creating opportunities and openings for themselves but they were often let down in the final third. However, an own goal by British Club gave the boys a much deserved lead when a cross from Kit on the left was headed in by the defender. They would have gone a couple of goals up but the list goes on for near misses with Kit being handed the bulk of chances in front of goal and Fadley taking too much time to pull the trigger. As the game wore on, the Brits began to control the game and were rewarded a goal with 10 minutes remaining but it proved to be mere consolation in the end with Sharks holding on for the victory.

The manager commented, 'The sending off was silly especially for one of the most senior players in the team. On the other hand, the boys were lucky not to be punished for not taking their chances in front of goal. Nonetheless, it was a good game and runout for the players.'