Late comeback sees Singapore beat Myanmar in warmup match for Mitsubishi Electric Cup

SINGAPORE – A comeback 3-2 win over Myanmar has given Tsutomu Ogura not only his first international victory as Lions coach, but also plenty of food for thought, after his side needed a late rally to beat their rivals at the National Stadium on Nov 14.

While it ended a winless run that had stretched to four international games under the Japanese, it was a performance that also laid bare the Lions’ dire need for improvement, with less than a month before the Asean Football Federation (AFF) Championship, also known as the Asean Mitsubishi Electric Cup.

The Lions had led 1-0 at the break, thanks to Hougang United winger Farhan Zulkifli’s first international goal, but were guilty of missing several chances as well. After a sloppy start to the second half, they allowed Myanmar to wrest the lead with two goals in five minutes.

But strikes by substitutes Shawal Anuar (84th) and Naqiuddin Eunos (86th) gave the Lions supporters among the 6,061 fans much to cheer about.

Ogura admitted their shortcomings, saying: “In the beginning, we were not so bad but after we scored the goal, we stopped playing football. We must improve.

“The second half, I don’t want to remember the first 10 minutes. For nothing, we lost two goals. The last 10 minutes we managed to change the score... and we got the result.”

He added: “I saw the players in the locker room (after the game) and they did not have a satisfied face. They know what the expectations are.”

Faris Ramli, who notched two assists after coming on at half-time, echoed his coach’s sentiments.

The BG Tampines Rovers winger said: “We were a goal up and in a split second, we slipped and they scored two. To go down two goals in a few minutes is unacceptable. We all know that.

“But kudos to the boys, we found the fighting spirit and belief to get across the line as a team. That is something to be proud of.”

Japan-born midfielder Kyoga Nakamura, who was named the Man of the Match on his Lions debut, said the team needed “more composure, hunger and desire” during the tough spells. 

Victory against Myanmar – ranked 165th in the world – also ended a winless run of over a year for the Lions, who are ranked three places higher.

The Republic’s previous victory was a 1-0 win over Guam in a World Cup qualifier last October. In six matches since then, Singapore had drawn once and lost five matches.

Singapore were playing their first match since long-serving custodian Hassan Sunny announced his international retirement at the age of 40 in August. Tampines goalkeeper Syazwan Buhari, 32, took his place.

Midfielder Shah Shahiran, 25, wore the armband as game captain, with regular skipper Hariss Harun, 33, playing alongside him.

With Nakamura, 28, at the heart of their attacks, the Lions looked lively in the first half.

Forward Abdul Rasaq Akeem also made his maiden Lions appearance, with the 23-year-old leading the line in the absence of Ikhsan and Ilhan Fandi, who were not called up after the BG Pathum United forwards could not confirm their release for the AFF Championship.

The opener came after just six minutes when Hougang right-back Nazrul Nazari broke into the box and put in a cross for club teammate Farhan to finish.

The visitors equalised two minutes into the second half when Syazwan failed to hold on to an effort from Zaw Win Thein and substitute Ye Yint Aung tucked in the rebound.

Myanmar struck again just minutes later as another substitute Thiha Zaw headed in amid loose marking from a corner to make it 2-1.

But Singapore staged a comeback of their own, with substitutes leading the way. In the 84th minute, Faris’ headed knock-down fell to Shawal, who blasted in from close range to level the score.

Just two minutes later, Faris found fellow substitute Naqiuddin, who scored his first Lions goal with a strike that was palmed into his own goal by Myanmar goalkeeper Kyaw Zin Phyo.

Myanmar coach Myo Hlaing Win said: “Our team made some mistakes but overall it was a good game. Singapore has good players and has good organisation. They were better than us.”

The Lions have one final tune-up against Chinese Taipei on Nov 18 at the same venue, where they will also embark on their AFF Championship campaign against Cambodia on Dec 11.