Al Caliph relentless march towards the title was disrupted by Amigos on a hot and humid Sunday morning. As usual, Al Caliph started the game taking on the onus to attack. Before any of the Amigos players managed to touch the ball from the first whistle, Shy had already threatened to score after a cross from Bob was diverted onto the crossbar and out. As if following a written template for this season, Al Caliph then conceded the first goal after a through pass was made in between the defence and Amigos speedy right winger latched on to it, send the ball over Anuar and into the net. 1-0 to Amigos. Stunned by the first goal, Al Caliph tried to push for an equaliser with Shy coming close a few times. Alas, it was Amigos who scored their second goal after some poor passes in the middle of the park ended up with the ball being played to an Amigos player who is suspiciously offside. The striker took a swipe at the ball and the spin wrong footed Anuar giving Amigos a 2 nil lead at half time.
After the halftime team talk, Al Caliph tried to get an early goal to force something out of the game. Once again, the momentum built up was destroyed when Amigos scored their third goal. A poor defensive header by Zj was directed into the path of an Amigos player who send in a cross into the six yards area. The cross was then diverted onto the underside of the crossbar and over the goalline sending the Amigos players into euphoria. Though the goal effectively ended any chance of Al Caliph to fight back, we still keep on attacking in search of the first goal. The goal finally arrived after a freekick was awarded just outside the penalty area. Up stepped Khai and his freekick was too hot to handle. The goalkeeper had no chance to keep it out even though he managed to get a slight touch to the ball. 1-3, a tinge of hope. All hope were dashed after Amigos’s 13th player, the referee (12th being lady luck) judged that Anuar’s challenge for a 50-50 ball was illegal and awarded a penalty to Amigos. Their influential midfielder, no. 18 duly dispatched the ball into the net with Anuar wrong footed. Amigos managed to stretch their lead after winning a freekick at the edge of the penalty area. The freekick was curling into the top left corner before Anuar struddle across and got both hands to it. But as luck would have it, Anuar’s slight slip due to the muddy pitch caused him to allow the ball to slip through his hands and against the upright. The ball then dropped kindly infront of the goal and one of the Amigos player was the fastest to react and sent it into an empty goal. 1-5 to Amigos. Al Caliph managed to make the scoreline more respectable after Khai won and coverted a penalty with 5mins to go. The seventh goal was to be the last goal of the match. Amigos had inflicted the first (hopefully last) defeat of Al Caliph in the 2010 season.
Al Caliph’s players were visibly down due to the result but on a more positive note, it is better to taste the bitter defeat now than later. It served as a wake up call to the team that we are not invincible. Only through hard work can we achieve our aim for the season. We lost the battle against Amigos but we still have a war to win. A war we shall win.
by Zj
Match Highlights