Woodlands Wellington vs Balestier Khalsa

(February 28, Friday, 7.30pm, Jalan Besar Stadium)

Written by: Kenneth Ho

Woodlands Wellington coach Darren Stewart will take on his former club Balestier Khalsa, whom he guided to the StarHub League Cup a year ago. It is also a homecoming for Kraljevic as he was previously the Prime League coach at Woodlands.

Stewart has targeted a top half finish with his new club while Balestier have been tasked to challenge for the league title by its Chairman S.Thavaneson.

The Tigers frontline will be led by former Croatia U21 striker Goran Ljubojevic who has duly impressed since arriving and much will be expected of him. Much of the focus will also be on Park Kang Jin after he had a starring role against Courts Young Lions whom Balestier defeated last week.

Stewart should know best how to counteract the threat of Park, having coached him before. He will also look to exploit his knowledge of Balestier and use it to his side’s advantage

For the Rams, they have assembled a squad with a blend of youth and experience this season with the capture of defender Bah Mamado.

Moon Soon Ho and Chang Jo Yoon proved that they are still a lethal combination against Hougang last weekend, and Balestier can expect to have a harder game this time round against more experienced players as compared to the Young Lions.

Key Man to Watch

Woodlands Wellington: Yazid Yasin

The stalwart of the Rams was as important as Moon Soon Ho in Woodlands last game against Hougang. The latter may have scored the equaliser, but Yazid was responsible for repelling everything Hougang threw at him to salvage a point for the Rams.

Yazid has an impressive save rate of 71% from seven shots, and will provide a stern test for the Tigers.

Balestier Khalsa: Goran Ljubojevic

The marquee signing made his Great Eastern Yeo’s S.League debut over the weekends and InStat indicated the Croatian was the most outstanding player for week one round of matches.

The striker presence cannot be understated for Balestier after he got himself into goalscoring positions and posted a 100% rate of shots being on target. The Croation not only scored a goal to mark his debut, but also showed he was hardworking and could offer the Tigers more than just goals.

Goran would work hard to get the ball back whenever possible, and the strike won 14 out of 23 challenges. Ljubojevic also used his height to great effect, when he succeeded in nearly (77%) of his air challenges.

Woodlands Wellington – DLLLD

22/2/114      Hougang United 2-2 Woodlands Wellington

4/11/13        Woodlands Wellington 3-6 Tampines Rovers

30/10/13      Balestier Khalsa 3-0 Woodlands Wellington

23/10/13      Albirex Niigata (S) 3-1 Woodlands Wellington

18/10/13      Woodlands Wellington 2-2 Tanjong Pagar United

Balestier Khalsa – LWLWW

23/2/14        Courts Young Lions 0-4 Balestier Khalsa

7/11/13        Balestier Khalsa 1-0 Global FC (RHB Singapore Cup)

4/11/13        Tanjong Pagar United 0-1 Balestier Khalsa

30/10/13     Balestier Khalsa 3-0 Woodlands Wellington

25/10/13     Balestier Khalsa 0-1 Home United

Head to Head (S.League)

30/10/13    Balestier Khalsa 3-0 Woodlands Wellington

19/9/13      Balestier Khalsa 1-2 Woodlands Wellington

2/5/13        Woodlands Wellington 3-1 Balestier Khalsa

20/7/12      Woodlands Wellington 0-2 Balestier Khalsa

18/3/12      Balestier Khalsa 2-0 Woodlands Wellington

31/10/11     Balestier Khalsa 2-2 Woodlands Wellington

10/7/11        Woodlands Wellington 1-0 Balestier Khalsa

21/4/11        Balestier Khalsa 2-0 Woodlands Wellington