Written by Nicole Chan

National Football Academy (NFA) U18 gained a 2-0 victory against Woodlands Wellington FC on Monday evening at the Bukit Gombak Stadium.

The rain-drenched pitch was set for a challenging game as both teams were equally matched, but were constantly losing possession of the ball at critical points.

NFA’S Sadik Said took a free kick which curled into the palms of Woodlands goalkeeper Ahmadulhaq Che Omar into the first-half of the game.

At the other end, Woodlands’ Faizal Amin came close with a effort from the right, but it was saved by NFA goalkeeper Kenny Loh.

After a first-half of intense competition, the score remained at 0-0.

NFA emerged from the break the stronger of the two, as they scored their first goal on the hour mark.

Midfielder Jeremy Lam delivered a deep cross which was headed in by team captain Zulfadhmi Suzliman.

NFA then struck again barely a minute later to stun their opponents for the second time.

Khairuddin Bin Omar’s low cross into the box was completely missed by Ahmadulhaq, and allowed the lurking Ashshiddiq Misban to tap in from close range.

The two-goal lead proved insurmountable for the Rams, and they soon stumbled to their second loss of the season.

NFA head coach Saswadimata Bin Dasuki expressed much satisfaction over his players’ performance, adding that they “deserved to win”.

Saswadimata explained: “The defence was solid and compact at the back and they all listened to instructions.”

Their victory also left him hopeful about the upcoming matches.

“I hope to finish off with another win before the second round. The boys’ momentum is starting to come back after the last few losses,” he said.

Meanwhile, Woodlands assistant coach Jasni Hatta remained optimistic about the result, applauding the efforts of his players.

Jasni commented, “I think the players played well, their performance was good but hardly do they play in this type of weather and this field. Good game for the Under-18.“

“Mistakes always happen in the game… We have to learn from it.”