No Peaceful Easy Feeling for The Eagles

Waddup guys. So I got my S-League media pass for sports journalism and now I can bring you guys updates on S-League games. By right, I'm not supposed to, because of some journalist confidentiality shit. But it's only TOWNs what. If they do find out I put MY articles on a blog, however, they'd slaughter me. So keep it on the down-low yo.

Meanwhile, I shall live precariously siol.

Oh, and Peaceful Easy Feeling is a song by The Eagles. As in the American band that sang Hotel California.

No Peaceful Easy Feeling For The Eagles
Geylang United falter at home against the Young Lions as bigger agendas loom ahead for both teams.
by Suffian Hakim


A solitary Yang Mu goal gave the Young Lions their third win in a row as they edged past Geylang United at Bedok Stadium in an evenly-contested match.

It was both teams' penultimate game in the Yeo's Great Eastern S-League, and it was a worrying result for Geylang United ahead of their Singapore Cup final with Thai outfit Bangkok Glass in less than a fortnight.

The Young Lions tried to floor the Eagles from the word go. In the sixth minute, the away team's striker Fadhil Noh let fly a sweet right foot shot from the edge of the box. Only an athletic save by Geylang custodian Yazin Yasin prevented the ball from dipping deliciously into the net.

Geylang's chances in the first half were limited mainly to long-range attempts and set pieces. Their best chance came with a 27th-minute free kick by Miroslav Latiak that escaped the wall, forcing Young Lions goalkeeper Hyrulnizam Juma'at to parry the ball. The resulting rebound fell to Kim Jae Hong's feet, but the Korean midfielder scuffed the shot wide.

However, it was the Young Lions who appeared more dangerous, combining the pace of Gabriel Quak with Hariss Harun's unpredictable passing and target man Yang Mu's strength and height to penetrating effect.

It was this exact combination that resulted in the Young Lions' goal just a minute before the half-time whistle. A well-weighted through ball by midfield maestro Harun released Quak down the left wing. The 19-year-old winger blazed beyond the reach of the flatfooted Geylang defence, and delivered a cross into the Geylang box. A lapse in concentration by the Eagles' backline allowed Yang Mu to drift unmarked between the two Geylang centre-backs and nod in the only goal of the game.

Nonetheless, Geylang can take heart as they dominated possession for most of the game, especially in the second half. Captain Latiak was at the heart of some very slick moves by the Eagles.

In the 61st minute, the Slovak forward reacted first to a loose ball just outside the Young Lions' box. Displaying pace and immaculate control, Latiak surged into a box crowded with white jerseys. The Geylang number 9 somehow found time to force in a shot from an acute angle that Juma'at could only parry. Hafiz Rahim rushed in for the point-blank rebound, but the shot was miraculously cleared off the line by Young Lions left-back Safuwan Baharudin.

A despondent Latiak said after the game, "I think we played well. We attacked a lot but I don't know why we couldn't score."

As Geylang look to improve on their finishing ahead of the Singapore Cup final, the Young Lions are also looking ahead. "We're hoping to bring this performance into the SEA Games," said Young Lions star Hariss Harun. "Or perform even better."

The result allowed the Young Lions to climb above Woodlands in the S-League standings, to 8th place. Geylang, meanwhile, remain two spots above in 6th.