Warriors FC vs Woodlands Wellington

(April 3, Thursday, 7.30pm, Choa Chu Kang Stadium)

Written by: Muhammad Yazid

Warriors FC welcome an unbeaten Woodlands Wellington to the Choa Chu Kang Stadium as both sides look to continue the climb up the league table.

After three wins in their opening five matches, Alex Weaver’s men sit third in the table on 10 points while the Rams are in seventh position on seven points.

Brought in to replace the departed Mislav Karoglan, forward Miroslav Pejic has settled in well at the club and leads the scoring charts with five goals. With his understanding between Nicolas Velez and Hafiz Rahim prospering, the Woodlands defence could be in for a hard time.

But Pejic and company will not have it easy as well, especially in the final third, against the Rams central defensive pairing of Milos Jevtic and Walid Lounis.

Jevtic has also demonstrated an eye for goal when going forward for set-pieces, with his acrobatic effort in the 2-2 draw with the Courts Young Lions an example of his scoring abilities.

Quiet but effective players for Weaver at the back are Jeremy Chiang and Zulfadli Zainal. These two are known for their constant overlapping run down the flanks.

However, with an ultra-attacking mindset, Warriors tend to leave a gap at the back when they surge forward in numbers.

Keeping Warriors defenders busy at the back will be Woodlands South Korean forwards Moon Soon Ho and Chang Jo Yoon. Moon was the league’s joint top scorer last season with 15 goals while Chang bagged 13 goals.

Suspension: Hassan Sunny (Warriors FC)

Key Men To Watch

Warriors FC: Miroslav Pejic

The main objective of a striker is to score goals, and this Warriors number ‘nine’ has been doing just that, with four goals in five games. His latest was a left-footed inswinging beauty which curled into the bottom corner of the net, against Balestier Khalsa where they drew 2-2.

A good test for Yazid Yasin and his defenders await this Thursday, as the question emerges – Will Pejic continue his fine-scoring form or will the Woodlands defence deny him?

Woodlands Wellington: Yazid Yasin

The league’s most longest-serving player is still up to his tasks in conceding minimal goals for Woodlands, as Yazid has certainly pulled off more than ten top-class saves since the start of the season.

The 34-year-old did all he could to prevent Albirex Niigata (S) from getting the equaliser last week with all his acrobatic saves but was helpless about the last-minute goal by Taiyo Nishida.

His chemistry with all his defenders has been working well so far, and that would be the only thing which would help them keep a clean sheet against Warriors.

Warriors FC – DWWLW

28/3/14    Balestier Khalsa 2-2 Warriors FC

20/3/14    Warriors FC 2-0 Hougang United

12/3/14    Warriors FC 3-0 Harimau Muda

28/2/14    Brunei DPMM 2-0 Warriors FC

23/2/14    Warriors 2-1 Geylang International

Woodlands Wellington – DWDDD

26/3/14    Woodlands Wellington 1-1 Albirex Niigata (S)

21/3/14    Tanjong Pagar United 0-1 Woodlands Wellington

13/3/14    Courts Young Lions 2-2 Woodlands Wellington

28/2/14    Woodlands Wellington 1-1 Balestier Khalsa

22/2/14    Hougang United 2-2 Woodlands Wellington

Head to Head (S.League)

25/5/13    Warriors FC 1-1 Woodlands Wellington

21/2/13    Woodlands Wellington 2-2 Warriors FC

13/9/12    Warriors FC 2-1 Woodlands Wellington

5/4/12       Woodlands Wellington 2-2 Warriors FC

11/9/11     Warriors FC 7-0 Woodlands Wellington

26/5/11     Woodlands Wellington 1-5 Warriors FC

8/3/11       Warriors FC 5-0 Woodlands Wellington