Story by reader Jolyn Ang. Photos by Chew Tian Wei and Marvin Lowe.
Jalan Besar Stadium, Wednesday, 21 May, 2008 - In a thriller of a game, the boys from Meridian Junior College managed to hold onto their 2-1 lead throughout the whole of the second half to see off Victoria Junior College, reclaiming the title they lost to Raffles Junior College last year. VJC, having rebuilt from last year’s disappointment of missing out on the final, came to Jalan Besar with hopes of giving VJC the first ever official A Division football double but they will have to try again next year.
Meridian showed their resolve by opening the scoring within the first minute with a potent free kick by captain, Md Khairyl (#8, MJC) that hit the crossbar and into goal. VJC Goalkeeper Joel Lau (#1, VJC) had managed to touch the incoming shot but was unable to stop it from proceeding further. The ball appeared to have gone in, but when it bounced out, confusion ensued. The Victorian backline attempted to clear it off the line only as far as a Meridian striker who made the goal beyond doubt by placing it in the left corner.
Forced to attack, the Victorians poured forward. However, their nerves showed and few doubtful decisions made by the referee did not help their cause. Their keeper, Joel, was judged to have handled the ball outside the box in the 11th minute and MJC was given a golden opportunity to double their lead with a direct free kick right outside the penalty box. Nonetheless, the shot was deflected off the VJC defense. VJC counter-attacked, only to have Alex’s (#10, VJC) pass intercepted and cleared into the sidelines. VJC’s throw-in eluded all to get to Chester Lum (#16, VJC) in the penalty box. As he was about to take the shot, he was roughed up by a MJC defender. The VJC boys looked to the referee for the penalty, but was disappointed by his waving of play on.
VJC continued to pile on the pressure and another free kick in the 14th minute was headed wide by VJC defender, Jun Liang (#5, VJC). Threatened, MJC’s coach made an early substitution, giving his #5 the nod and retiring the #30 to the bench. It seemed to have worked as Joseph (#16, MJC) managed to get the ball into the box in the 16th minute only to have Joel turn hero as he came off his line to take the ball. In the 23rd minute, Hyder (#15, MJC), who was a serious threat throughout the whole game, swung in a cross which was met by a team-mate. Luckily, the shot was saved by VJC’s keeper.
Undaunted, VJC kicked into gear and in the 26th minute, Nicholas Kang (#17, VJC) sent a cross to Alex who then flicked it to Anders (#9, VJC). With only the keeper left to beat, Andes shot the ball straight at him. Sorely missing the finishing touch, VJC tried again in the 27th minute with a corner kick by captain, Gavin Lee (#13, VJC) that missed the top left corner of goal.
When it seemed as though it was just not their day, their efforts finally paid off in the 29th minute where Nicholas Kang managed to penetrate the Meridian right flank to send in a cross to just outside the penalty box. Chester unleashed a half-volley, letting the ball strike turf once before he met it and sent it into goal.
1-1, game on, or so VJC thought but MJC replied within five minutes. Capitalising on the Victorian lapses in defence, MJC’s Mahdi (#23) made the score 2-1. He had managed to push forward and find his way past two Victorian defenders at the left flank before crossing. His cross was met by Hyder (#15, MJC), who managed to elude the Victorian centre-backs and head it past Joel (#1, VJC) right smack in the centre of goal. The first half concluded with tactical changes by VJC and another substitution by MJC, seeing Khairi (#10, MJC) come on for Fazli (#7, MJC).
The second half began with VJC also making a substitution - Yap Heng (#7) came on for Jonathan Tan (#2). Within three minutes, VJC gave MJC a scare when Jun Liang powered the ball into the box with Chester on the chase and beating the off-side trap. MJC’s keeper rushed off his line and slid in to prevent Chester from getting a decent shot.
The impact left Chester twisting in pain after the collision but it was merely the first taste of an intense half that was to come.
MJC’s #6 had to be stretchered off the field in the 46th minute but VJC did not relent. In the 51st minute, Alex managed to fire off a powerful shot that could only be parried by the MJC keeper to the right. Nicholas Kang managed to get to the rebound but was unable to contain his excitement and shot high, the ball striking the crossbar to the dismay of the standing Victorian crowd.
That was to be Alex’s last major contribution to the game and the striker was taken off due to a recurring injury that he had picked up during training. He was replaced by Kenneth Gomez (#8, VJC).
MJC gained some momentum from the 58th minute onwards as their #16’s corner kick was headed by a team-mate wide. The header having judged to have deflected off a Victorian, they were given yet another corner kick which was cleared. Seconds later, a free kick was given and taken. Victoria, unnerved by the sudden onslaught, conceded yet another corner. Unfortunately, MJC failed to convert any of these kicks.
VJC’s Anders made his presence felt in the next few minutes, taking a shot outside the penalty box in the 63rd minute. After chesting down a pass, he took his shot but saw it sail above the crossbar. With MJC players cramping up, VJC took a quick throw in the 66th minute and Anders penetrated the left flank, sending a well-placed cross that slid across the goalmouth.
Luck was not on the Victorian’s side however, as they lost their vice-captain and defender, Jun Liang to a late tackle by MJC’s #17. The Meridian player saw yellow for his brutal challenge.
A Victorian barrage in the dying minutes reaped no rewards and MJC had the chance to put the game beyond doubt in the 79th minute when Daniel Guo (#9, MJC) found himself in a one-on-one with Joel. His shot hit the left post. The Victorians heaved a huge sigh of relief. MJC managed to hang on to their lead and when the final whistle blew, blue reigned whilst the yellow side of the stadium fell silent, rueing their countless missed chances.
Nevertheless, the Victorians quickly recovered and joined the Meridian crowd in cheering for both teams. The audience was obviously appreciative after being treated to a display of sportsmanship and fighting spirit that can only be found in a clash between two deserving finalists. In the end, the difference between the champion and the runner-up in a game that really saw players of both teams play below par was merely who had the ability to sort out their pre-final jitters first.
Check out the other report on the final.
Ed’s note: If you recognise yourself or your team mates in any of the photos, feel free to leave the names in the comments section and we will update the captions accordingly.
things happen in soceer.
it is always a miraculous second away from a beautiful finish or a disastrous miscue.
that’s the beauty of soccer. the wonderful opportunities and unpredictability.
MJ won b’coz they capitalised on their chances and defended ferociously.
VJ put up an excellent resilient fight.
And it is in the end a well-matched balanced fight, tipped to MJ, fortunately and unfortunately for some.
But well, this is the love of the game right!
Soccer.
photo 10 should be tedrid not jun liang.
yea im from the school
im sorry for my earlier comments.
next time i’ll go shake his hand
he really gave it his all
yes I agree with finale-. Both teams deserved the chance to be in the finals and when it came to the game, both teams played their hearts out wanting to be the champions. Personally feel that luck is not something we should use to determine the ‘if’s or possibilities that could have happened should things take a different turn. Both teams have players which equally good technically and mentally. In every game there will be a losing team and a winning team and it might not necessarily mean that the winning team is way better in terms of skills. Many factors decide the outcome of the game. As supporters of our respective teams, we should show utmost support for our boys because through hard work and great effort they managed to get to the finals and give us reason to be proud of our schools. If we the supporters judge their play and ability in a condescending and critical manner then I believe we have to be able to play better soccer than them.
hahah. sorry if i appear to be rude but i dont mean it. hahahaha.
photo 10 ” Tedrid of VJC player closes down an MJ player” vj player is jun liang. mj is zaki.
Photo 28. Khairil shouting we are number one to EX MJC LEFT BACK, CHEONG JIAMIN. GOT EX vj player pakin, this one also got name!
Last picture, the guy in red is ex-MJC’s player Cheong Jiamin.
veejay – i don’t know if you’re from vj but if you are, i’m ashamed you’re a victorian. come on, you should be more supportive instead of pushing the blame or anything and directly saying it’s the keeper’s mistake? all sportsmen make mistakes on their playing ground, and it’s how you pick yourself up from the mistakes and continue on with the game.
and i do have to say after which joel did save a good number of balls so please. WHO ARE YOU to say it’s his mistake? he’s feeling bad enough already and stop your insensitive comments.
we, as supportive victorians with sportsmanship definitely do not blame the boys for the loss. cos in our hearts they’ll always be champions and it was just great looking at how they played and fought.
mj players
photo 2,15,16-alan
photo 5-joesph obaje
the goals scored by mj luck?
more like keepers mistake
doesn’t matter who has the better skills or luck and who deserved to win guys.i believe the MJ players have every right to be proud of their victory.and the VJ guys have every right to be proud that they fought all the way till the final whistle.
The debate about beautiful football or long ball tactics or even sportsmanship won’t matter too ‘cuz i personally feel this is football.You’re looking at 22players playing their hearts out for their school.What happens on the pitch stays on the pitch.No matter how they played the game what matters is who lifts the trophy.It was great spirit from both soccer powerhouses in the A Division.May we meet again in ’09 =)
– VJ Old Boy.
I see. Thanks! Will wait for someone else to update the names for the captions then.