Young Lions taking on Geylang International, 16 April 2022

 

SINGAPORE, 21 APRIL 2022 – The Young Lions experienced mixed fortunes over the past week as they walloped Geylang International for their first win of the season before succumbing to a narrow defeat against Tampines Rovers. We recap all the action below…

 

Young Lions off the mark
Young Lions 4-1 Geylang | Jalan Besar | 16 April
Zikos Chua 7′, Ryhan Stewart 22′, 58′, Qayyum Raishyan O.G 83′ | Šime Žužul pen. 71′

 

An emphatic win by the developmental side was kick-started by Chua, who thumped home Khairin Nadim’s ball across goal against his former club. Stewart then continued his recent hot streak with an outrageous 40-yard effort that caught goalkeeper Zaiful Nizam off his line, before benefiting from Chua’s unselfish pass to net his second. Žužul would pull one back for the away side from the spot, but the Young Lions ended the night with a flourish as Joel Chew’s free-kick went in off the back of Qayyum to seal the three points.

 

Facts

• In both 2021 and 2022, Geylang won their opening games of the season but failed to win their subsequent six matches.
• This is Young Lions’ biggest winning margin since a 3-0 victory over Home United in September 2019.
• This is the first time Young Lions led by two at half-time and had a 3-0 lead since a 3-1 win over Hougang United in October 2021.
• This is the first time Young Lions have benefitted from an own goal since a 3-1 defeat to Albirex Niigata (S) in September 2018.
• Young Lions scored four for the first time since a 4-2 win over Balestier Khalsa in August 2021.
• Young Lions have conceded in each of their last 42 SPL matches.
• Stewart scored his first-ever brace and netted in successive games for the first time in his SPL career; he is now on his career-best seasonal tally of three goals, surpassing his previous record of two in 2020.
• Chua made his first career assist.
• Zaiful made his 250th SPL appearance, while teammate Kieran Teo made his first professional start.
• Qayyum made his first SPL appearance since August 2019 when he came on for Young Lions in a 2-1 defeat to Geylang.

Young Lions: Ridhwan Fikri (GK), Syabil Hisham (Syed Akmal 87’), Jacob Mahler (C), Syahrul Sazali, Ryhan Stewart (Arshad Shamim 81’), Joel Chew (Rezza Rezky 87’), Shah Shahiran, Harith Kanadi, Jared Gallagher, Khairin Nadim (Abdul Rasaq Akeem 72’), Zikos Chua (Glenn Kweh 72’).
Unused subs: Umar Sujuandy (GK), Raoul Suhaimi, Amir Syafiz, Fairuz Fazli.

Geylang: Zaiful Nizam (GK) (C), Ilhan Noor, Kieran Teo, Rio Sakuma, Ahmad Syahir, Huzaifah Aziz, Takahiro Tezuka, Hazzuwan Halim (Qayyum Raishyan 46’), Vincent Bezecourt, Fareez Farhan (Danish Siregar 67’), Šime Žužul.
Unused subs: Zulfairuuz Rudy (GK), Hafiz Ahmad (GK), Yeo Hai Ngee, Zulfadhmi Suzliman, Badrul Amin, Azri Suhaili, Furqan Raoff.

 

Stags climb to second
Tampines 3-2 Young Lions | Our Tampines Hub | 9 April
Boris Kopitović 56′, 90’+2, Shuya Yamashita 83′ | Zikos Chua 1′, Jordan Emaviwe 22′

 

Young Lions looked set for a second straight win after Chua finished off from a tight angle to put them ahead within a minute, before Emaviwe hooked a brilliant effort into the top corner amid a goalmouth melee. However, the Stags came roaring back in the second half with Kopitović curling in a neat dead ball to pull one back before Yamashita nodded home the equaliser off Yasir Hanapi’s deep free-kick. The comeback was completed in injury time when Kopitović converted his second free-kick of the night to send the home fans wild.

 

Facts

• On the last five occasions that Young Lions won a game, they have gone on to lose the following one.
• Tampines came from two goals down to win for the first time since March 2014 when they edged Harimau Muda B 3-2.
• Tampines have conceded at least two in a match for a fourth straight match – they have no clean sheets in their opening seven games of the season for the first time since a 11-match run in 2006.
• Young Lions conceded for a 43^rd straight outing.
• Chua’s goal at 42 seconds is the earliest SPL goal since July 2018 when Shuhei Hoshino scored on 33 seconds in Albirex Niigata (S)’s 2-1 win over Tampines.
• Emaviwe scored his first professional goal, while Chua scored in successive games for the first time in his SPL career.
• Kopitović netted in five straight games for the first time in his SPL career; he also netted his first-ever free-kick goals. He is now just five goals away from matching his 2021 tally of 16.
• Kopitović scored his third brace of the season and his seventh overall since arriving in the SPL in 2020; no other player has more.
• Tampines’ Ali Manaf made his SPL debut.
• Eight yellow cards were dished out in this match – the most in a single match so far this season.

Tampines: Syazwan Buhari (GK), Christopher van Huizen (Ali Manaf 82’), Irfan Najeeb (Adam Reefdy 67’), Shuya Yamashita, Irwan Shah, Kyoga Nakamura, Ong Yu En (Firdaus Kasman 36’), Zehrudin Mehmedović (Andrew Aw 67’), Taufik Suparno (Amirul Haikal 82’), Yasir Hanapi (C), Boris Kopitović.
Unused subs: Danial Iliya (GK), Iman Hakim, Marc Ryan Tan, Syed Firdaus Hassan.

Young Lions: Ridhwan Fikri (GK), Syabil Hisham, Jacob Mahler (C) (Syed Akmal 40’), Jordan Emaviwe (Syahrul Sazali 54’), Ryhan Stewart (Arshad Shamim 54’), Joel Chew (Glenn Kweh 54’), Shah Shahiran, Harith Kanadi, Jared Gallagher, Khairin Nadim, Zikos Chua (Amir Syafiz 80’).
Unused subs: Umar Sujuandy (GK), Abdul Rasaq Akeem, Rezza Rezky, Danish Qayyum.

 

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