BG Tampines Rovers unstoppable in 4-0 rout of Albirex Niigata in Singapore Cup semi-final, 1st leg

SINGAPORE – Buoyed by their qualification for the round of 16 of the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) Champions League Two, BG Tampines Rovers were eager to extend their scintillating form to the domestic stage.

They did exactly that on Dec 14, cruising to a commanding 4-0 win over Albirex Niigata at the Jurong East Stadium in the first leg of their Singapore Cup semi-final.

Tampines coach Noh Rahman said: “I thought we brought our Champions League kind of performance to this game, which was always going to be tricky after a good Champions League game, but again, the boys deserved it.

“The first half was a bit difficult, which we expected but again, we kept knocking on the door and then the goals came.”

After a goal-less first half, in which Tampines registered six attempts – two on target – the floodgates opened not long after the restart.

The breakthrough arrived in the 56th minute when Koya Kazama pounced on a poor Albirex clearance and whipped the ball into the path of Takeshi Yoshimoto to lay it off for Hide Higashikawa.

Tampines’ star striker made no mistake, calmly sweeping his finish into the bottom right corner to bring his tally to 12 goals in 14 matches across all competitions.

From there, the visitors never looked back. Joel Chew doubled the lead in the 76th minute straight from a corner kick, with Trent Buhagiar making it 3-0 nine minutes later, firing in from an angle after Higashikawa’s shot attempt was blocked.

The rout was completed in added time when Higashikawa surged down the right flank, shrugged off his marker and squared the ball for substitute Talla Ndao to drill home.

In the process, the Stags also racked up an eighth win in 11 games in all competitions.

That stretch included an impressive group-stage run in the continental competition, going unbeaten with five wins – including one over K League 1 side and three-time Asian champions Pohang Steelers – and a draw to top their group.

Noh said: “I’m just pleased because now the boys have a little bit more belief that we can not only compete at (Asian) level and get points off big teams, and we just try to hold that standard when we play in the league.”

Chew said the squad’s collective mindset has been key to their success.

He said: “Everybody just has a common goal in the way that we want to play. Everyone understands that the team’s performance and result come first over the individual.

“That’s the main driving point for us this season and the main reason we’re doing so well – because everyone is on the same page.”

It was a difficult result for the White Swans, especially after they had gone undefeated in the group stage of the Singapore Cup.

However, coach Keiji Shigetomi is not waving the white flag ahead of the second leg on Dec 20 at Our Tampines Hub, saying: “It was a very, very tough game. But we still have the second leg, so we must prepare for the next game.”

In the other semi-final, the Lion City Sailors also put themselves in a strong position with a 4-1 victory over Balestier Khalsa in the first leg at Bishan Stadium, thanks to goals by Bailey Wright (26th), Lennart Thy (34th), Shawal Anuar (48th) and Anderson Lopes (57th), after Bogdan Mandic had given the Tigers a 12th-minute lead.

ANALYSIS

Tampines’ performance underlined their depth and ability, with four different players getting on the score sheet and a clean sheet to match their attacking dominance.

Albirex’s defensive frailties were exposed by the swashbuckling Stags, showing that the four-time Singapore Cup champions still have much work to do to regain their past glory.