Like the Old Dame, the Lions will attempt to defy and defeat Vietnam tonight in the second leg of their Asean Football Federation Suzuki Cup semi-final.

The two countries drew 0-0 in the first leg in Hanoi four days ago in a match which saw the Lions put up a tame display.

At 8pm tonight, coach Raddy Avramovic, with help from the home fans, will attempt to fire the Lions in their quest for a third consecutive regional title.

The Serbian tactician, unbeaten in his 19 matches in charge in this tournament, yesterday paid tribute to the thousands of fans who packed Kallang to witness the Lions' Asean winning campaigns in 2005 and 2007.

The defending champions have to overcome Vietnam to guarantee a meeting with Thailand in the final. The Thais defeated Indonesia 3-1 on aggregate in the other semi-final.

'The Kallang Roar is part of the team. And the team is part of Kallang Roar,'' Avramovic said.

'Having the great home support shows that the fans trust this team and the players, in return, will try their best to produce a result in 90 minutes.''

Left-back Daniel Bennett agreed, saying: 'Honestly, I thought those days of playing in front of a full house at the National Stadium had gone.

'But here's another chance for us to have a happy farewell to this ground.

'At the last two tournaments, the fans were already streaming into the stadium well before the matches started.

'Their passionate support is exactly what we need. It really spurs the players on.''

Striker Noh Alam Shah, who has been breathing fire, promised to 'thrash Vietnam' on social networking website Facebook.

'When I see the fans on the terraces, it makes me think about the effort they have put in to make their way to Kallang. To have them on our side is an incredible motivation,'' he added.

The spirit in the camp is high as injured Lions Khairul Amri, Hariss Harun and Fazrul Nawaz joined the squad for lunch at the Amara Hotel yesterday.

And Singapore's tactical headache in the left-midfield slot appears to have been solved.

With John Wilkinson facing a late fitness test on his strained calf muscle, Avramovic has put his faith in Shahril Ishak, who has just recovered from a lung infection.

The Lions have also left no stone unturned in their preparations. As with all training sessions, the squad ended by practising penalty shoot-outs.

Goalkeeper Lionel Lewis has also been briefed on where the Vietnamese players usually place their spot-kicks.

At the end of the session, Avramovic nodded his approval and took a rare moment out to reflect on the team's four-year unbeaten sequence.

He said simply: 'We want to continue our winning ways.''

His opposite number, Henrique Calisto, has labelled the game as 'a party, not a war', believing that the Vietnamese media, who have been highly critical of his nine-month reign, are taking the game too seriously.

The Portuguese coach also expressed worries that, despite the forecast of good weather, any sudden tropical downpour can disrupt his team's short passing game.

'Singapore's players are taller and more muscular. They have better footing on a wet surface,'' he explained.

At the close of ticket sales yesterday evening, 23,355 were sold, including all grand-stand tickets.

But Lions fans are known for showing up in droves on match day itself to buy tickets.

Naturally, the Lions will want to oblige their faithful fans and sink their fangs into the visitors' jugular vein.

Expect the Kallang Roar to be heard loud and clear, and the party to go on well into the night.

meng@sph.com.sg