Written By: Kenneth Ho
Balestier Khalsa coach Marko Kraljevic was delighted to clinch a 1-0 win over Albirex Niigata (S) although he admitted the White Swans could feel hard done by the result.
The Tigers achieved victory courtesy of a late goal by Robert Pericic, who struck three minutes from time to help his side steal three vital points.
Prior to that, neither side really threatened much in front of goal and a point would have been a fair outcome.
After the game, Kraljevic credited his side for grinding out a result which pulled them to within two points of league leaders Brunei DPMM, albeit having played two games more.
“It was very tough playing against Albirex. They kept possession very well and in the first half they had a few chances,” Kraljevic said.
“But we worked hard and did what we were supposed to do. We can’t say it (the win) was deserved but my players worked very hard today.”
With the Tigers scheduled to play DPMM in their last game of the season, Kraljevic was convinced their title hopes now lie in their own hands.
“We have very tough games coming… five more to go and every game will be very tough,” he asserted.
“It all depends on us, if we keep winning and keep playing like we played today, by working very hard, then we can win the championship.”
Title rivals Albirex on the other hand were left disappointed, as they lagged further behind in the title race.
Albirex coach Tatsuyuki Okuyama felt let down by his defence, as he felt their lapse of concentration towards the end afforded Pericic the space he needed to net the match-winner.
“We dominated the game but Balestier played very solid and a lack of concentration in a few seconds we let them score the goal so it was very disappointing,” Okuyama expressed.
However, the White Swans are refusing to give up on their title ambitions just yet, with Okuyama looking for his side to rebound quickly in their remaining games.
“As always, we still have seven games to play so we just have to do our best for each game and keep on going,” he said.
