Lions 1 - 1 bmkid (387152456)

49458 punters turned up at Peugeot Arena, and despite threatening clouds on the horizon, no rain came. Ugo Solazzo was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Alexei Satin and Victor Farr. Lions decided to use a 4-3-3 set up. Starters: Dordea - bin Ahmad, Rothskog, Dolski, Imgrüth - Cavedon, Šopák, Mordoch - Fais, Ismail, Chía.

bmkid tactics involved an interesting 5-3-2 combination. The following players took the field: Henriksen - bin Sulaiman, An How, Fereday, Ying Long, Teck Yeow - Ah Hai, Jensen, Rong - Errazti, Calvet.

Lions mostly ignored the flanks in favour of their ability to attack in the middle. bmkid were relying on their ability to counter-attack. Central attacks were the recipe of the day for Lions, as they moved the ball from the wings to the middle with startling regularity. It was obvious that team Lions had instructions to attack in the middle instead of on the wings. The teams went for the halftime break at 0 - 0. Possession in the forty-five minutes was dominated by Lions, with 62 percent of the ball.

Having been awarded a free kick in an awkward position after 59 minutes, bmkid did not go for a shot but instead fired the ball hard into the 6 yard box. After a brief tussle with his marker, J. Jensen was able to power the ball past the keeper to make the score 0 - 1. Coming in from the right, bmkid had a good opportunity to convert on a counterattack after 61 minutes, but P. Calvet's attempt to finish was easily stopped. The opposing supporters gave the referee an earful when he only gave N. Teck Yeow from bmkid a yellow card after a mistimed challenge from behind 78 minutes into the game. That was far too lenient! With 80 minutes gone, a long pass from the defence of bmkid resulted in a counterattack that set B. Errazti free through the middle, but the keeper made a spectacular diving save. Lions's M. Cavedon was shown a yellow card for standing over the ball and blocking an opponent's quick free kick after 83 minutes. The crowd was on its feet 84 minutes into the match, as Lions's M. bin Ahmad found himself unmarked in front of the goal after a dash up the left side. He calmly put away the 1 - 1 equaliser. bmkid had several good opportunities to take the lead, especially 86 minutes in when P. Calvet came up alone against M. Dordea who managed a block. The referee showed bmkid's L. Rong the yellow card after a particularly nasty challenge. Unfortunately for Lions, A. Chía was injured when the game became more physical, and he had to leave the field. H. bin Ariffin replaced him. M. bin Ahmad was handed the Lions captain's armband. Lions enjoyed most of the ball, as they maintained 63 percent of possession.

Lions's top performer was clearly H. bin Ariffin. M. bin Ahmad was a disappointment, however. Y. Ying Long performed admirably for bmkid. On the other hand, A. Fereday's play was disheartening. The match ends 1 - 1.