JAFC Survives Gambas Onslaught

In a rough and tumble encounter at the NTU Grounds, JAFC recorded their first win of the season thanks to a first half goal from Fuhang.

From a free-kick in JAFC's own half, Jerry laid the ball into the path of Feroz. With the Gambas midfielders caught napping, Feroz took advantage of the freedom of space to flight a pin point ball behind the Gambas defensive line. Surging forward with purpose and bravery, Pramod sneaked in between the on-rushing defenders and goalkeeper to nod the ball into the path of Fuhang. Displaying composure and a surprisingly deft left foot, Fuhang placed the ball into the empty net to give JAFC the lead at half time.

In the 2nd half, Gambas came flying off the blocks. Their full-blooded challenges were calculated and malicious, but many went unpunished. This resulted in a string of physio stoppages to treat JAFC's injured players. The referee finally stepped in when the Gambas left back came flying in with a shin-level double footed tackle on Andrew. The tackle ended Andrew's participation in the game, but also resulted in the referee brandishing a red card for the obscene tackle.

Despite going down to 10 men, Gambas continued to lay siege to JAFC's goal as JAFC struggled to maintain possession. In particular, Gambas' goalkeeper's long accurate kicks often left the JAFC backline scrambling. One such punt downfield left the striker clean through on goal, but his effort was brilliantly thwarted by Tim. That was the closest Gambas got to a goal as JAFC stood firm and secured a hard fought victory.

Lineup: Tianci (Tim), Jerry, Aaron, Jerome, Andrew (Junrong), Feroz, Fuhang, Pramod (Khai), Zul, Winston, Victor

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I'm sure we all agree that Gambas' tactics were ridiculous and disgusting. But from a tactical point of view, it worked by putting us off our game and allowed them to gain a stranglehold of the game in the 2nd half. This is typical of a lot of teams in NFL and it's games like these that many of us mature considerably.

I am very sure all of us walked away from this game better footballers. Football always has lessons to teach, and it is those who learn the fastest that succeed. Well, for a start, i think this game has underlined the importance of quick 2 touch passing and movement off the ball. It resulted in our goal, and would have made it much more difficult for such teams to get close enough to unleash their dirty tricks.

Quote of the game from Tianci: "Wah this is the 1st time i ever got 3 points in a competitive game."