Written by: Kenneth Ho

Courts Young Lions coach Aide Iskandar commended his team for a much-improved performance against Tampines Rovers despite them going down 3-2 in the fixture on Saturday evening.

After suffering a 4-0 spanking by Balestier Khalsa in their previous game, many expected Tampines to win the game against Young Lions with ease.

However, Young Lions defied expectations of them being overrun by the reigning champions, and even managed to grab an early lead in the game, with Iqbal Hussain striking in the second minute of the game.

Yet, lapses in concentration by Young Lions allowed the Stags to strike back, with goals from Mrdakovic and Duric proving enough in a tight encounter.

“We started well scoring the first goal in the opening minutes. But unfortunately we conceded through our own individual mistake. For me it’s a much better performance than the Balestier’s defeat,“ Aide said.

“Anumanthan came on in the second half and stabilised the midfield, but unfortunately he was caught napping for the last goal when he should have closed Shahdan (Sulaiman) down.

“The boys showed better confidence in terms of their play. There are still work to do and hopefully once we get Sahil (Suhaimi), Syazwan (Buhari) back, we will get better.“

Tampines coach Salim Moin admitted his team were given a scare by Young Lions, but added he was pleased to see Tampines fight their way through the game and take home three points.

“Young Lions gave my team a good fight and I am very pleased with my team  performance. They showed great spirit and even though they are a goal down they come back strongly and Miljan scored the final goal. That’s very awesome to see,“ Salim said.

While there were suggestions the Stags had allowed complacency to seep into their game against Young Lions, Salims waved them off and insisted his side were suffering from having little time to recuperate after having to face Kitchee SC three days ago in the AFC Cup.

“The team is very experienced and they know their responsibility. They learnt the lesson and they know they have to win the game in the league and make sure we are still at the top of the table. That is very important,“ Salim added.

“I strongly believe in the boys’ character. They are very experienced and they are quality players.“