November 27:
The U17 team were honoured for winning the Centre of Excellence (COE) Under-17 league championship at a pre-match awards ceremony that was held before their seniors took on the Young Lions in the last match of the 2023 season at Our Tampines Hub (OTH) on Sunday evening.
Earlier this month, the young Eagles ended their season, one point ahead of Balestier with 44 points from 21 games where they have 13 wins, five draws and three losses after defeating Tampines Rover to seal the championship.
Mohamed Raiyan Bin Mohamed Noor was named as the COE 17 player of the season while special mention was given to Adam Rahman who served as volunteer coach and Assistant Team Manager for the U17 and U15 teams.
For the seniors, it proved to be a forgettable night as they concluded the season with a 4-2 defeat to Young Lions in the Singapore Cup, despite an initially promising start with Takahiro Tezuka and Yushi Yamaya giving the Eagles a two-goal advantage at halftime.
The tide, however, turned after the dismissals of Ahmad Syahir Sahimi and Shahfiq Ghani. Those red cards opened the door for the visitors to mount a comeback, securing all three points for their first win of the campaign.
Tezuka had delighted the home fans by breaking the deadlock in the 39th minute, unleashing a superb volley into the top corner. Just four minutes later, it was Yamaya’s turn as he fired a thunderbolt, leaving goalkeeper Umayr Sujuandy with no chance once again.
However, the two-goal lead vanished within the opening 15 minutes of the second half, and the red card shown to Ahmad Syahir in the 52nd minute proved to be the pivotal moment of the game.
Taking advantage of the numerical superiority, Young Lions swiftly pulled back two goals in just three minutes, with Kan Kobayashi netting in the 57th and Kieran Teo in the 59th, respectively.
Just as Geylang International was trying to regain composure, they suffered another setback when Shahfiq Ghani was sent off, reducing the home side to only nine players.
Despite the Eagles’ efforts to secure a draw, their hopes were shattered when Jared Gallagher struck from outside the box in the first minute of stoppage time.
With the match extended for an additional eight minutes, Farhan Zulkifli secured a fourth goal, completing their comeback.
A disheartened Noor Ali struggled to comprehend as disciplinary issues once again emerged for his side.
Geylang International had already paid a heavy price for the same reason during their earlier 4-1 defeat to Brunei DPMM, a match in which they initially took the lead.
“I don’t know what Ahmad did, but the two red cards changed the complexion of the game,” lamented Noor.
“Whatever the referee calls, it’s foolish for players to react that way. The red cards we’ve received have cost us numerous matches this season, especially in the league.
“In many games where we held the lead, the momentum was disrupted due to these send-offs. It’s tough when we don’t have a big squad at our disposal.
“Players must be aware that we can’t afford such situations. On-pitch discipline is something we definitely need to improve for the next season.
“We want to express our gratitude to the Ultra Eagles, the family members of all players, and the coaches who have supported us.
“This has not been the season we desired, but we are determined to come back stronger next year.”
Ends.
